Ghoul Summer
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
In this beachside ghost story that’s perfect for fans of Erin Entrada Kelly and Wednesday, twelve-year-old Barnaby is forced to spend his summer helping his grandpa move, only to be confronted by Maxwell—a moody ghost boy with some unfinished business.
Barnaby had grand plans for his summer. He should’ve been spending his days watching movies and gaming with his friends. Instead, his parents drag him to the boring beach town of Sunnyside to help his grandpa move.
Just when he thinks this summer can’t get any worse, a ghost boy named Maxwell shows up in their vacation rental home to kick Barnaby and his family out.
Barnaby tries everything to get rid of Maxwell on his own. But when his attempts fail and Maxwell actually becomes stronger, Barnaby realizes that there’s only one solution to his ghost troubles: helping Maxwell figure out his unfinished business. If he doesn’t, the ghost might ditch the rental home for Barnaby’s body instead.
With the clock counting down to the end of the trip, Barnaby is forced to enter an uneasy truce with Maxwell to find the truth—or be haunted forever.
Perfect for Halloween readingA charming cozy seasonal pick
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A tween's boring summer vacation takes a bizarre turn in this eerie ghost story by Badua (Thea and the Mischief Makers). Twelve-year-old Barnaby Vargas is resigned to spending the summer helping pack up his grandfather's beachfront home in preparation for his moving in with the Vargases. What Barnaby assumes will be a humdrum season, however, becomes a certified nightmare when he realizes that his family's nearby summer rental is haunted by perpetually 11-year-old Maxwell Warner, who died in 1984 and has been stuck in the residence ever since. Following some initial friction—the ghost isn't thrilled to be sharing his room with the mortal, who is similarly unenthused about being haunted—the pair strike a tentative truce: if Barnaby helps Maxwell complete his unfinished business, Maxwell will stop tormenting Barnaby. But the longer it takes to discover what Maxwell's unfinished business is, the more likely it becomes that Barnaby will be haunted forever. Badua contrasts a carefree summer at the beach with expressions of Maxwell's—and, across a lateral subplot, Grandpa's—frustration and loneliness as they each struggle to move on. Maxwell's plight as a boy out of time and Barnaby's craving for normalcy against the backdrop of a decades-old mystery further highlight themes of home and belonging as both boys search for their place and purpose. The Vargases are of Filipino descent; Maxwell cues as white. Ages 8–12.
