Spooky & Spookier: Four American Ghost Stories

by Lori Haskins Houran, Viviana Diaz (Illustrator)

Overview

American history mixes with legend in four classic ghost tales for Step 4 early readers: a Cape Cod ghost horse that leads ships away from danger; a portrait that protests being moved within Virginia’s Shirley Plantation museum; a Colorado miner who continued to look for love even after his bones were dumped down an outhouse hole; and a one-handed California sea captain whose ghost is still said to prowl Stinson Beach.
 
Step 4 Readers use challenging vocabulary and short paragraphs to tell exciting stories. For newly independent readers who read simple sentences with confidence.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780553533965
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	07/07/2015
Series:	Step into Reading Book Series: A Step 4 Book
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	542,697
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	7 - 9 Years

About the Author

LORI HASKINS has written more than twenty books for kids. She lives in Florida with her two book-loving boys.
 
VIVIANA DIAZ earned a degree from the Ringling School of Art and Design in Florida.  She later worked as a scenic artist with the Dallas Theater Center and Southwest Studios in Texas, and has taught courses in illustration at Pratt Manhattan.

Editorial Reviews

09/01/2015
Gr 2–4—This is a collection of four ghost stories embedded within American history. Through simple text and challenging vocabulary, readers learn about a ghost horse, a skeleton that will not stay buried, a haunted painting, and a dead sea captain searching for his lost hook. The stories contain the perfect amount of scary for young elementary readers—not to be confused with the highly challenged "Scary Stories" series by Alvin Schwartz. The selections imply ghostly apparitions and question the appearance of said ghosts with thoughtful probing. The sentences are short and simple with vocabulary that is meant to be challenging but decodable. The painted illustrations add much to the stories as they show the ethereal goings-on in a colorful palette that prevents readers from being too frightened. Moreover, the illustrations are accompanied by photographs and captions of the inspiration for each of the ghost stories. These factual representations allow readers to combine fiction with nonfiction to earn a greater understanding. VERDICT A must-buy for libraries whose readers love ghost stories.—Brittney Kosev, Terra Vista Middle School, Wolforth, TX

School Library Journal