Aggie and the Ghost

by Matthew Forsythe, Matthew Forsythe (Illustrator)

Overview

A LitHub Most Anticipated Children’s Book of 2025

“A book that captures the dance of unlikely bonds and a way to move from a place of acceptance.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

From Matthew Forsythe, the creator of the acclaimed and beloved Pokko and the Drum, comes a “subtle, sweet” (Booklist, starred review) picture book about rules. And sharing. And an epic game of tic-tac-toe.

Aggie is very excited to live on her own—until she finds out her new house is haunted. But no fear, the situation is nothing that can’t be fixed with a carefully considered list of rules: No haunting after dark. No stealing socks. No eating all the food.

But the ghost doesn’t like playing by the rules and challenges Aggie to an epic game of tic-tac-toe—winner gets the house.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781534478213
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Publication date:	08/19/2025
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	64
File size:	76 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Matthew Forsythe is the author-illustrator of Pokko and the Drum, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, a recipient of the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award Honor, and a Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book. He is also an illustrator for animated films and television. His credits include Adventure Time, The Midnight Gospel, and Robin Robin, a stop-motion animated musical from Aardman Animations and Netflix. He lives in Los Angeles. Visit him at ComingUpforAir.net.

Editorial Reviews

A witty year-round ghost tale that delivers a wonderfully unconventional conclusion.

June 15, 2025 - Kirkus

Aggie’s new house is haunted. She’d been excited to live on her own, but now “the ghost followed her everywhere.” Setting rules for it (“No haunting after dark. No stealing my socks. And no more eating all the cheese”) only leads to broken rules. A frustrated Aggie challenges the ghost to a game of tic-tac-toe; if it loses, it will have to move out. The game goes on so long that they forget why they were playing, but more house rules being made and broken leads to the ghost finally disappearing. Is it gone for good? And is that really what Aggie wants? Forsythe (Pokko and the Drum, rev. 1/20; Mina, rev. 1/22) introduces another smart female protagonist who reassesses her needs, learns how to problem solve, and mostly gets what she wants (introverts, the clever ending is for you). The story’s repetition and brief sentences will appeal to beginning readers, the tone is droll and slightly edgy, and the balance between the text’s pace and the spot, single, and double-page-spread art is nicely measured—particularly at page-turns. As for the expressive characters, Aggie’s gnome-like appearance is endearing, with the shapeshifting ghost a whimsical counterpart. Forsythe’s style of aesthetically pleasing textured watercolor, gouache, and colored-pencil illustrations features a soft palette of fall colors, especially fitting for this slightly spooky tale (readers will enjoy spotting the ghost or its eye throughout).

Horn Book - 9/1/2025

Poor Aggie was really looking forward to living all on her own, but that proves to be impossible when she discovers that her new house is haunted by a rather persistent, rule-breaking ghost. Not only does the ghost refuse to leave Aggie alone, but he also will not abide by any of her requests, defiantly choosing to haunt after dark, steal Aggie’s socks, and eat all the cheese. Even an epic game of tic-tac-toe and a pronouncement by the Man-Faced Owl can’t solve their living situation until one day the ghost is just . . . gone. And Aggie is thrilled with her new solitude, but after a few days, she realizes she might be missing something. She wanders out into the rain to let the ghost know she has one more rule—“Don’t ever visit me from time to time”—a condition the ghost does break so the two have some time together. The book makes clear, however, that these truly are only occasional visits—“though it would be nice to say they became the best of friends, they did not.” That bit of bite tempers what could have been a treacly ending, and the book as a whole successfully leans more toward weird than pedantic, eschewing a familiar friendship storyline for one that plenty of introverted youngsters will find resonant. There’s lots of potential here for beginning readers, with stealthy repetition, short but guiding sentences, and a steady, compelling pace, all elevated by snarky humor. The illustrations, rendered in watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil, share a color palette and style with Jon Klassen’s The Skull (BCCB 7/23), and the blurred, fluid textures have an almost glow-like effect that is at times eerie and other times comforting, matching the dual tones of the text. This would serve as an excellent bridge between Drago’s sweet supernatural picture books (Gustavo the Ghost, BCCB 9/20, Vlad the Fabulous Vampire, BCCB 9/23) and Klassen’s aforementioned early reader. KQG

June 2025 - BCCB

[A] book that captures the dance of unlikely bonds and a way to move from a place of acceptance.

5/12/2025 - Publishers Weekly

* The third picture book from Forsythe confirms the author-illustrator’s trademark style, marked by
whimsical storytelling, absurd humor, and surprising page-turns.... Forsythe’s wry text is tight and deadpan, set against a richly rendered setting of softly blended peaches and blues, a bit more stripped down than in previous titles, holding a tone that is at once inviting and immersive—but with a gentle edge.... A subtle, sweet friendship story from a true original coming into his full picture-book powers.

July 2025 - Booklist STARRED REVIEW

2025-05-16
A headstrong young girl finds herself in a haunted house standoff.

Aggie’s excitement about living independently quickly dissolves when she discovers that her lovely new cottage in the rainy woods comes with an unwelcome, shape-shifting, ghostly roommate. Determined to make it work, the light-skinned, short-haired Aggie establishes house rules for the ghost—“no haunting after dark,” “no stealing my socks,” “no more eating all the cheese”—but her spectral companion proves resistant to regulation. The conflict escalates to a high-stakes tic-tac-toe match, where the winner gets the house. Forsythe’s signature watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil illustrations masterfully supply both emotional depth and charm to the characters and setting. In a particularly mesmerizing double-page spread, a supernatural vortex of swirling, eye-studded ghostly forms draw the gaze toward an opening where a small, determined Aggie and her equally resolute opponent face off. Glowing pinks juxtaposed with deep indigos heighten the dramatic atmosphere. The delightfully wry ghost’s ever-changing forms and expressions create a humorous visual journey that will have readers hurrying to discover each new, surprising incarnation. Though the narrative occasionally feels assembled to showcase striking artwork over story flow—a minor issue that likely won’t trouble Forsythe fans—the refreshingly imperfect resolution offers young readers a nuanced ending rarely found in picture books.

A witty year-round ghost tale that delivers a wonderfully unconventional conclusion.(Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews