Product Description

Secrets

Orphaned fifteen-year-old Judith Sparrow brings two secrets to her uncle's house in South Carolina: one, that her grief-stricken mother died in a madhouse, the other that she has disobeyed the only condition to living in her uncle's home -- nothing green is allowed in the house.

Judith can't bear to part with the photograph of her mother in its lovely green silk frame. Surely this one small defiance will not jeopardize the happiness she finds in South Carolina -- with a family at last, and new friends, especially Zeke Carey, the miller's son.

But Uncle Geoffrey's house holds a secret of its own. And Judith's small picture frame, hidden away at the bottom of her trunk, unleashes a powerful force that seems determined to bring that secret into the open. Or is Judith simply following her mother down the path toward madness?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #400216 in Books
• Published on: 2001-06-01
• Released on: 2001-05-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 176 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780689820021
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Amazon.com Review
"Then at the end of the street, the house--the large brown house with the two eyes--made me suddenly clutch at the driver's arm as if to say, Turn back! Turn back!" At the first sight of her uncle's house--her future home--an inexplicable cloud of foreboding engulfs orphaned teen Judith Sparrow. Unfortunately, her fears are confirmed when she hears a mysterious scratching at the back of her closet and senses a ghostly presence hovering over her at night. Even more chilling, Judith learns of the death of a girl named Jade Green from the town gossip--a girl who lived in her uncle's house before Judith and died a horrible death on the attic stairs. As it turns out, Jade dearly loved the color that was her name. Suddenly, Judith knows the reason she was forbidden by her uncle to bring anything green into the house. She fears that by smuggling in a small green picture frame, she has roused the sleeping ghost of Jade Green and assured the doom of all who sleep under her uncle's roof!

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, best known for her humorous Alice series and the award-winning Shiloh, has dished up a fine gothic tale with all the trimmings: a brave, orphaned heroine; a dark and dreary manor; a hunky savior; a dastardly villain; and the star of the cast--a ghostly severed hand that holds the secret to Jade Green's untimely demise. This novel is a shivery delight that is ideal for both reading under the covers and sharing aloud with a group of enthralled listeners. Heartily recommended. (Ages 12 to 15) --Jennifer Hubert

From Publishers Weekly
PW called this period ghost story about an orphaned girl who moves a great distance to live with her only relatives "a satisfying spine-tingler." Ages 10-14. (June)
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8-When Judith Sparrow is orphaned at age 15, she is lucky enough to be taken in by her elderly Uncle Geoffrey in South Carolina, where she helps the cook with housework but is otherwise treated as family. She finds work in a hatmaker's shop and makes friends, but two things mar her happiness. The first is Charles, her 40-year-old unemployed, dissipated cousin, who lavishes unwanted attention on her. The second is the mystery concerning a girl named Jade Green, who used to live in the house but who died gruesomely three years earlier, supposedly by her own hand. Strange scratching noises coming from her closet, a bloodstain on the stairs, and finally a hideous disembodied hand begin to terrorize Judith, until a final showdown with Charles shows Judith the truth about Jade Green's demise. The slightly old-fashioned, first-person narrative matches the period setting of this story, which is unspecified but is set sometime in the horse-drawn past. Judith's adjustment to her new life, her budding friendship with a young man named Zeke, and her growing horror of the supernatural happenings in her new home will absorb readers. Judith isn't a particularly plucky heroine; she must be rescued twice, once by Zeke and once by Jade Green. Nevertheless, this is a satisfying ghost story that demands to be read in one sitting.
Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Spine-tingling gothic tale.
Young, orphaned Judith moves into an old house where strange things happen, especially at night. Sound like a formula novel? It is. But it's a genuinely scary one, with a ghostly prescence that just may not be evil, and an ominous guy that's very human and just may be more wicked than the ghost. Creepy fun with a cool ending to top it off.

A great ghost story!
Jade Green: A Ghost Story is another good book by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, and it's a great ghost story!

15 year old Judith's parents have both died, her mother in the madhouse, so she goes to live with her uncle. He said one strange thing, however - not to bring anything green. She can't part with a small, green silk frame that her mother gave her, however, so she takes it secretly.

Soon after Judith reaches her new home, strange things begin to happen - she hears of a girl, Jade Green, who died by her own hand in the same house, 3 years ago. Terrifying things begin to happen, and she doesn't know what to do!

A romance with the boy next door, a new job, and avoiding her threatening, grown cousin, complicates things further, and she wonders if things will ever be all right.

This was a great book, with an exciting plot, well developed characters, and things that were truly scary! I'd recommend this for ages 12 and up.

Naylor Really Nails It!
Jade Green is a truly hair-raising ghost story and it has a very frightening but exciting plot. It's a good book for people who are ages nine to twelve years old. Jade Green is about an orphan girl who moves in with her uncle, but there's one rule, you can't bring anything green in the house because a girl named Jade Green died in that house. But, the orphan girl got a green picture frame from her mother before she died. She tries to hide it.....but you'll have to read it to see what happens next! Jade Green is full of surprises... and very, very scary! I could read it over and over! The message of this book is to always listen to what people are saying. For example the uncle says "Get rid of everything green" but the orphan girl didn't get rid of just one thing and that's how this forbidding ghost story starts! You experience a whole other, ghostly world of suspense. Phyliss Reynold Naylor really made everything clear to me, such as who is talking and what is going on at the tim. It's just a really great book!