Dial-A-Ghost

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After spending most of his 10 years in a London orphanage, Oliver Smith is horrified to discover he is the sole master of a grand old mansion. Oliver is quite satisfied with his life just as it is, but he soon finds himself ensconced in a spooky, creaky tower bedroom in Helton Hall, under the care of his two cruelly calculating cousins, the Snodde-Brittles. Cousin Fulton and Cousin Frieda, next in line to inherit the family mansion if something should happen to Oliver, have offered to help him settle in to his new home. Of course, if the matron of the orphanage knew that this assistance involved renting bloodthirsty ghosts from the Dial-a-Ghost Agency in hopes of frightening the boy to death, she certainly wouldn't have allowed Oliver out of her sight. As it turns out, though, there's been a bit of a mix-up at Dial-a-Ghost. The gruesome specters intended for Helton Hall accidentally end up at a convent, while the gentle family of ghosts that wind up in Oliver's home suit him just fine, much to his evil cousins' dismay.

ANNOTATION

A family of nice ghosts protects a British orphan from the diabolical plans of his evil guardians.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

When little Oliver Smith inherits the gloomy mansion Helton Hall, his scheming cousins, the Snodde-Brittles, are determined to rid themselves of the orphan heir. They have a perfect plan. They will hire some terrifying ghosts from the Dial-a-Ghost Agency to scare the boy to death. But, as in any Eva Ibbotson novel, the fantastic creatures do not necessarily behave as expected-they are a little too human for that. Soon the ghosts, led by a mysterious girl spirit named Adopta, have joined with Oliver against his cousins. But they may have underestimated the depths of the Snodde-Brittles' evil....

The laughs and frights are thick in this spooky story, which is sure to join Eva Ibbotson's other books as classics of the genre.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Once again, Ibbotson (Which Witch; Island of the Aunts) dishes up an irresistible brew of magical high jinks and adventure in this tongue-in-cheek post-WWII ghost story set in Britain and starring two families of displaced spooks. Miss Pringle and Mrs. Mannering, founders of the Adopt-A-Ghost agency, are delighted when they find homes for two of their hard-to-place clients, the Wilkinson family of five (who died all at once when a bomb hit their house) and the Shriekers, a pair of maimed and foul-smelling aristocrats who, after suffering the loss of their only child, aim to rid the world of as many living youngsters as possible. Due to a clerical error, the spirits wind up in the wrong homes. The Shriekers haunt an abbey filled with mild-mannered nuns, and the Wilkinsons move into the Snodde-Brittle estate, where their two evil hosts plan to scare to death the youngest heir, a kindhearted orphan named Oliver. The comedy of errors becomes more complicated by the minute as murderous plots are foiled, ghost busters are hired and the identity of the Shriekers' long-lost daughter is uncovered (astute readers will figure it out before the Shriekers do). Hawkes's whimsical drawings perfectly capture the book's slapstick action and sly humor. Readers will be highly amused as disjointed pieces of the puzzle start to neatly interlock. Ages 8-12. (Aug.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Children's Literature - Joan Kindig

This is a fun little fantasy full of ghosts both kind and terrible that ends with everyone living happily ever after. Helton Hall has fallen into the hands of a young orphaned boy, Oliver, who has two older, horrible cousins, Fulton and Frieda, who want the place for themselves. Fulton (next in line to inherit) devises a plan to bring in some perfectly awful ghosts to haunt the castle and frighten young Oliver so dreadfully that he'll leave Helton Hall forever. Two old ladies in London have a ghost-placing agency called Dial-A-Ghost Agency and it is here that Fulton turns. Miss Pringle and Mrs. Mannering, the proprietors, take pride in putting the right ghosts in the right situation. They decide to send a family of ghosts, The Shriekers, to Helton Hall because Fulton has said he wants some mean ghosts to entertain the masses when he opens the Hall to the public. Never does it cross their minds that Fulton might be up to no good. At the same time, a convent of nuns offers a ruined part of their abbey to a family of lovely, docile ghosts and the Dial-A-Ghost Agency finds the Wilkinson family for them. At the last minute, a switch of files occurs and, well, you can guess the bedlam that ensues. Nevertheless, Oliver falls in love with the Wilkinsons (the first family he's had) and they figure out what Fulton is really up to. This is a funny, somewhat predictable story, but fans of Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 13 will love it; Harry Potter fans may find it enjoyable, too. At the end, Oliver and the ghosts outwit Fulton and they all live happily ever after at Helton Hall, which has been turned into a ghost research facility. A fun read. 2001, Dutton,

VOYA

This novel relates the tale of a family of nice but presently homeless ghosts of people who were killed during a London bombing in World War II. They seek the help of an agency that matches ghosts to haunts. Fulton Snodde-Brittle, an opportunistic and evil heir to a large estate, also seeks help at this agency. Fulton secretly engages some shriekers to scare away Oliver, a young orphan who is all that stands between him and the manor. A mix-up luckily sends the nice ghosts to Oliver and some available shriekers to an unfortunate convent. The ghosts make fast friends with Oliver and conjure up a few friends of their own to match wits with his evil uncle. The shriekers and a rid-a-ghost service, however, have more surprises in store. This author, whose Which Witch? (Dutton, 1999) was a bestseller, has carved a niche in the juvenile fiction market for stories involving magic, wizards, and ghosts. Given the phenomenon of Harry Potter, there likely will be many young adult crossover readers for this novel. Ibbotson manages to make the macabre and maudlin somewhat funny, as did Roald Dahl. A pleasant, quick read for those who enjoy supernatural stories, the novel has a definite British flavor and a juvenile-level story, but it also has many interesting plot twists and a good sense of humor that recommend it for middle school and junior high collections where there is interest. VOYA CODES:4Q 4P M J (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses;Broad general YA appeal;Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8;Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9). 2001 (orig. 1996), Dutton, 256p, $15.99. Ages 11 to 15. Reviewer:Kevin Beach—VOYA, December 2001 (Vol. 24, No. 5)

School Library Journal

Gr 3-6-When a perfectly respectable family of ghosts finds itself homeless, its members are horrified to have to take up residence in a knicker shop (think Wonderbras). Luckily, an agency for the placement of homeless ghosts finds a lovely convent for them to haunt, but they are accidentally sent to Helton Hall instead, which is inhabited by one small and lonely orphan. The two hideous spirits who were supposed to be sent there to scare the boy to death (courtesy of Oliver's scheming, evil uncle) are mistakenly sent to the convent. But all turns out well and the evil uncle ends up a ghost in the knicker shop, tearing merchandise apart with his teeth. The irresistible premise of this story is that if you happen to become a ghost, you go on pretty much as you did before, but with tastes a tad more macabre. The book is filled with a large and delightful cast of characters, some made of ectoplasm and some made of flesh. No one could be as frightening as the de Bone ghosts, who festoon themselves with rotting gobbets of meat and a ghostly python, except maybe Uncle Fulton, who wants to take over Helton Hall. The Wilkinsons, from the bewhiskered, umbrella-wielding Grandma to little Adopta, are the perfect ghostly family for Oliver. The black-and-white illustrations have an eerie charm. Don't miss this phantasmally funny fantasy.-Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Child Magazine

A Child Magazine Best Book of 2001 Pick