The Haunted House Project

Gr 4–6—Thirteen-year-old Andie, who has a passion for ghosts, has tragically lost her mother, and neither she nor her family are able to regroup. Her father has developed a gambling addiction, and her older sister is scrambling to keep food on the table as she grieves in her own isolated way. When Andie and her science partner, Isaiah, need an idea for a science project, they decide to study the paranormal. Andie develops an experiment of her own; she leaves reminders of her mother (a spray of perfume, moved photographs, and words written on dusty surfaces), hoping to rouse her family from their sadness. This is an honest portrayal of one girl's grief and her mixed-up ways of trying to cope in a world of pain and silence. Multiple, and sometimes disjointed, story lines are in keeping with the adolescent first-person narration. The time line of a subplot involving the protagonist having to choose between her old group of friends and her budding friendship with Isaiah doesn't quite add up, which may confuse readers. The novel ends with Andie and her family in a better, if not perfect, place after a rapid resolution in the final pages. The hopefulness of the message that things can get better will appeal to tweens.