Product Details
The Ghost Children

The Ghost Children
By Eve Bunting

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Product Description

When Matt and Abby go to live with Great-Aunt Gerda in Sierra Madre Canyon after their mother dies, Matt is put off at first by the life-size wooden dolls whom Aunt Gerda talks to and calls her “children.” However, when someone vandalizes the dolls and two are stolen, it is Matt, with the help of his new friend, Kristin, who foils the would-be thief and returns the dolls to Aunt Gerda.

Product Details

  • Amazon Sales Rank: #978660 in Books
  • Published on: 2005-10-17
  • Original language: English
  • Number of items: 1
  • Binding: Paperback
  • 176 pages

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6-- Newly orphaned Matt and his little sister Abby are invited to live with their great-aunt Gerda in California. Upon their arrival they discover seven life-sized dolls in the front yard that their aunt refers to as her "children." Vandalism and a deliberately set fire turn out to be only the tip of the iceberg as Matt discovers that someone is trying to force his aunt out of her home. When two of the dolls are stolen, Matt becomes convinced that he must get Abby away. In the course of their flight the thief is accidentally discovered, and all is happily resolved. Mild doses of suspense and mystery, an interesting situation, and smooth writing make this an adequate choice. For really spine-tingling suspense mysteries, direct readers to Betty Wright's The Dollhouse Murders (1983), A Ghost in the Window (1987), and Christina's Ghost (1985, all Holiday). --Lisa Smith, Cold Spring Harbor Library, N.Y.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Eve Bunting has written more than 200 books for children, many of which can be found in libraries around the world. Her other Clarion titles for very young readers include My Big Boy Bed, which was also illustrated by Maggie Smith, and Little Bear’s Little Boat, illustrated by Nancy Carpenter. She lives in Pasadena, California.

Customer Reviews

a mystery with ghostly wooden children5
The Ghost Children,by Eve,Bunting is about two children who are left orphaned after their mother dies and leaves all of her paintings for them to sell.They have to go live with their aunt and she has children that are life- like dolls and are very ghostly. Neighborhood kids throw trash at them. The author, Eve Bunting, got the idea for this story from a newspaper it was about a widow and how she lived all alone except for her life- like wooden dolls. One reason readers might like this book isbecause it is a good mystery and it has an unexpected ending. A really good scene is when the children go to Mr. Steingle's office and discover something that had been stolen from their aunt.Another good reason why readers might enjoy this book is, that the dolls have a voice to talk to people and they scare the neighbors to the point that they will do just about anything to get her to move away or to get rid of her dolls.

A great read!5
I used this book each year as a read aloud in my fourth grade classroom. The children LOVED it!! It has just enough creepiness to keep readers on their toes, but not too much. There is also a theme of family and belonging as well as "being new in town." Overall it's a terrific book, and I'm glad to see it back in print as it was out of print for several years.