From Publishers Weekly
Erin, 12, resents her parents' adopting Cowper, a nine-year-old musical genius and the child of recently deceased friends. Because of him, the family is spending the summer in Milwaukee, where Cowper will attend a conservatory. Erin misses the fun she would have had with her friends investigating a "haunted" schoolhouse and renting scary videos. But when Erin writes and directs her own video, another side of Cowper emerges, and she ultimately exchanges self-centeredness for the role of a loving big sister. The book's narrative and dialogue have the sound of a bygone era, and Wright ( The Dollhouse Murders ; A Ghost in the Window ) gives her heroine a theatrical bent. The title is justified: Erin witnesses a seance conducted by an elderly neighbor and later agonizes with her parents over Cowper's disappearance. But the ride to that point is tedious, and readers may want to disembark much earlier. Ages 9-12.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6-- A compelling summertime adventure. Erin Lindsay is definitely not looking forward to spending her vacation in Milwaukee. She and her family have arranged an extended stay so that her younger, adopted brother can take a master class in piano at the conservatory. Cowper, or Cowbird, as Erin is prone to call him, has ruined everything for her. And now she has nothing to look forward to--not even skateboarding, which, next to her love of horror and ghosts, is her passion. After making friends with her apartment building's resident medium and her collection of talking dolls, Erin becomes involved in Molly Panca's world and experiences the scariest night of her life. This winsome tale is moderately suspenseful, and the action builds at a measured pace. There are many tender moments that focus on Erin's desire to be as perfect as the heroine of her favorite book. Her parents' attention is focused on the adopted son and his musical genius, not on the child as a whole person. Many familial emotions with which children can identify abound throughout this well-told tale. --Jana R. Fine, Clearwater Public Library System, FL
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
