Review
As the title hints, this is a darker, more scary book than the previous four in the "Chronicles of Green Knowe" series. A new neighbor, Melanie D. Powers, expresses an undue interest in the house. Ping, Tolly and Granny Oldknow agree there is something strange and not quite trustworthy about her as she probes for information about the house. Tolly realizes how mysterious Melanie is when he sees a cake fly from the table into her hand. At a later visit Melanie tries to trick Granny into selling her the house, and is quite angry when her ruse doesn't work. Soon awful things like a plague of maggots, an infestation of snakes, and wayward ghosts invade the peace at Green Knowe and they all realize truly evil forces are at work. They suspect their new neighbor is behind the problems and work together to restore the tranquility at Green Knowe. This eerie tale is filled with tension, but as the reader hopes, the courage, resourcefulness and wisdom of Ping, Tolly and Granny Oldknow help them prevail in the end. 2002 (orig. 1964), An Odyssey/Harcourt Young Classic, (
Janet Crane Barley - Children's Literature )
Richly and reasonably imaginative and full of a shivery sense of eerie menace." (
Book Week )
"A . . . delicious sense of friendship as well as the suspense of a well-knit plot characterize this story." (
School Library Journal )
Product Description
L. M. Boston's thrilling and chilling tales of Green Knowe, a haunted manor deep in an overgrown garden in the English countryside, have been entertaining readers for half a century. Now the children of Green Knowe--both alive and ghostly--are back in appealing new editions. The spooky original illustrations have been retained, but dramatic new cover art by Brett Helquist (illustrator of A Series of Unfortunate Events) gives the books a fresh, timeless appeal for today's readers.
