Malam, John. Ghosts. Irvine, CA: QEB Pub, 2010. ISBN: 978-1-59566-750-2.
Author / Illustrator Website: http://www.johnmalam.co.uk/index.htm
Media: Pencil, Pen and Colored Ink with Photographs
Use of Allusion: (p. 30) “The Friendly Ghost,” “A Christmas Carol,”
Use of Onomatopoeia: (p. 21) “The line is crackly,”
Use of Alliteration: (p. 22) “House of Horrors.”
Special Notations: Non-fiction, 2010 Copyright Date
Annotation: Ghosts contains over a dozen brief chapters about the meaning of the term ghost, famous reputedly haunted houses, poltergeists and how to hunt for ghosts. Book includes a timeline, glossary and index.
Personal Reaction: The subject of this book is pure fun and will appeal to many curious students in grades five, six and seven. Author John Malam takes a subject that has fascinated people for centuries and updates it with a graphic novel / yearbook style that makes factual information pop off the page. I appreciated the style of this book and believe that students are more likely to read non-fiction works with this type of visual appeal. Blending high-interest subjects with fresh graphics and short chapter lengths encourages reading and will especially appeal to reluctant readers. “The Most Haunted House in England,” (p. 10) is a good example of the appeal of this book. This chapter draws readers in from the start: “Borley Rectory was doomed from the day it was built in 1863, on the site of an old monastery where a nun was said to have been buried alive.” Accompanying illustrations show a man finding part of a skull and a map of England marking the haunted house’s location, as well as a factual sidebar about the history of haunted castle stories. This would be a good book for teaching students how to use a glossary, timeline, index or table of contents because the subject matter would certainly keep students’ attention. Additional books in the Monster Mania series and the “You Wouldn’t Want to be . . . ” history series, also by John Malam, are equally appealing non-fiction purchases.
