The Old Willis Place by Mary Downing Hahn

Diana and her little brother, Georgie, are ghosts living in the woods surrounding old Miss Lilian’s place. They cannot go beyond the gate at the end of the lane, they are not to enter the crumbling mansion, and they can’t let anyone see them. Then Lissa moves into the trailer out back. Her father is the new caretaker and Diana decides having a new friend is more important than the rules. The main voice is Diana’s, but readers know Lissa’s side of the story through her diary entries, which Diana steals and reads. In the end, with Lissa’s help, the children confront nasty Miss Lilian’s ghost. Their remains are found in the basement room where Miss Lilian locked them, to teach them a lesson. Unfortunately, Miss Lilian had a stroke before she could release them, and their spirits are reunited with their parents. Even nasty Miss Lilian’s spirit is forgiven and can move on. Author Mary Downing Hahn still has quite a way with characters. These children and even the ghosts all seem real and the reader comes to care about them. The horror here is not bloody or gory, but nonetheless will make readers shiver with sympathy and suspense. Give this to your Betty Ren Wright fans or those looking for a more realistic feel to their ghost stories. Library Media Connection (January 2005)

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Thunder from the Sea by Joan Hiatt Harlow

Grade 4-7–In this novel set in Newfoundland in 1929, 13-year-old Tom Campbell, an orphan, travels to Back o’ the Moon Island to live with and work for Enoch and Fiona Murray. On his first fishing trip, he rescues a young Newfoundland dog from the sea during a storm and names him Thunder. A local boy, Bert Bosworth, and his father, Amos, also want the animal, and they go to great lengths to find his original owner out of spite. Thunder is a kind, intelligent creature who several times saves the islanders from danger. After a harrowing episode in which Amos shoots and slightly injures the Newfoundland while he tries to pull villagers away from a pending tidal wave, the Bosworths realize that the dog truly belongs with Tom. When Fiona needs help with a difficult birth, Tom and Thunder prove their courage by taking her across the ice by sled during a blizzard. The book concludes with Enoch and Fiona officially adopting Tom and with Thunder’s original owner giving the dog to the boy and his new family. The episodic chapters are fast paced and the narrative creates a real sense of time and place. Tom’s growing affection for the Murrays and his feelings about his pet are clearly delineated. Fans of Harlow’s Star in the Storm (McElderry, 2000), dog lovers, and readers yearning for a cozy tale will enjoy curling up with this story.–Shawn Brommer, South Central Library System, Madison, WI
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Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

The book is about a girl named Meggie whose life changes dramatically when she realizes that her father, a bookbinder named Mortimer (nicknamed Mo), has an unusual ability: when he reads aloud, he can bring characters from books into the real world. Meggie and Mo’s adventure takes them throughout Europe, particularly Italy, and brings them into contact with many unusual characters.

The sequel, Inkspell, was released on October 1, 2005, and the third book in the trilogy, Inkdeath, is set to be released in 2008.

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