Great Ghost Rescue FROM OUR EDITORS
Eva Ibbotson unleashes a host of displaced ghosts in this spookily spirited book that'll keep you laughing! When construction workers begin remodeling dismal Craggyford Castle to build a holiday camp, the family of ghosts residing there -- including a father named the Gilding Kilt, a Hag for a mother, screaming George, Wailing Winifred, and gentle Humphrey the Horrible -- decide they must find new digs. Stumbling into a school dormitory, they meet Rick, a student who learns the only real help for them is Britain's prime minister himself. After a number of other ghosts join their cause, along with a couple of hauntings to make a few nonbelievers in ghosts shiver in their shoes, Rick and the ghost family finally wind up at 10 Downing Street, where they are awarded a marvelously "hulking black ruin" named Insleyfarne Castle. But have the ghosts really found their dream home, or is it a political plot to get rid of them? Loaded with lighthearted adventure that's ghastly exciting, The Great Ghost Rescue is another imaginative treat from the author of Which Witch? and The Secret of Platform 13.
ANNOTATION
A young English boy decides to establish a sanctuary for an assortment of ghosts when the homes they have haunted are replaced by highways and other modern "improvements."
FROM THE PUBLISHER
The ghosts of Britain need a sanctuary. Castles with central heating, bogs drained for motorways, dismal forests cleared for car parks -- there are few places left for a respectable ghost to haunt. Humphrey the Horrible is a small, mostly unsuccessful ghost in a family of ghastly ghouls. His mother worries. But Humphrey has enough pluck to befriend a smart, politically aware schoolboy, Rick Henderson, who is willing to take the ghosts' cause right to the top, to number 10 Downing Street -- home of the Prime Minister.
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
"Fans of Dial-A-Ghost will eagerly welcome this new flock of floating phantoms," according to PW. "The ghost's housing shortage continues, and human hero Rick wants the British government to do something about it." Ages 8-up. (May) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Children's Literature - Kathleen Karr
Eva Ibbotson does fantasy with a lovely, droll touch. It's a welcome British talent, and fans of her The Secret of Platform 13 will be delighted by the import of this earlier work. It's a tall(but ecologically significant(tale of the woes of Humphrey the Horrible and his extended ghost family as they lose their ancestral haunting castle to suburban sprawl. In search of a new home, they descend en masse on a dormitory of the Norton Castle School. Enter Rick, a very alive young man with compassion and a social conscience. He takes on the ghosts' cause with enthusiasm, and is soon visiting the Prime Minister in London to beg for a sanctuary for Britain's ghosts and ghouls and vampire bats. That's just the beginning of the adventure. Mad businessmen and exorcists and a lonely and perfect Scottish castle are soon added to the mix. Ibbotson has the most fun with her descriptions, though. Ecotoplasms never seemed so real; hags never smelled more exotic(and who'd have thought one could fall in love with a baby vampire bat named Rose? It's a good read all around. 2002 (orig. 1975), Dutton,
School Library Journal
Gr 3-7-Cast out when their spooky castle gets modernized into a holiday camp, Humphrey and his ghost family search for a new home. They meet a friendly schoolboy named Rick who decides they should start a "ghost sanctuary," since human expansion has ruined so many ghoulish spots in England. When the sanctuary turns out to be a trap meant to exorcise all of the ghosts, Rick and Humphrey must save the day. Ibbotson's sense of humor is in fine form, especially in her detailed descriptions of the various ghostly characters. Headless Aunt Hortensia and Humphrey's brother, George the Screaming Skull, are just two of the repulsive, yet endearing figures. There's a bizarre warmth of feeling between humans and ghosts, as when Rick agrees to let a sickly young vampire bat suck a bit of his blood in a gross, but weirdly tender scene. The humans are mostly exaggerated caricatures, which works fine for most of them, including the evil exorcist, who neatly ends up as a ghost in need of sanctuary himself. However, Rick and his human friends who help are less engaging than other Ibbotson protagonists. Plot contrivances that keep the story moving, including a convenient local witch coven and a surprisingly understanding Prime Minister, fit with the lighthearted tone, but also prevent the story from becoming truly involving. The book still has considerable appeal, though, because of the deliciously consistent macabre humor and the entertaining ensemble of ghosts.-Steven Engelfried, Beaverton City Library, OR Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
AudioFile - Paul B. Janeczko
The ghosts of Craggyford Castle have been happy for five centuries. But their spirits are dampened when their haunts are reclaimed and gentrified, their bogs drained, filled, and turned into golf courses. Rick, a schoolboy concerned about all endangered species, finds a refuge for them. British actress Prunella Scales is perfectly suited to reading this cautionary tale. She changes voices deftly not easy when most of the characters are ghosts. P.B.J. �AudioFile, Portland, Maine
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