DEAL WITH A GHOST

by Marilyn Singer ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 1997

Is it possible for a girl to make the same mistakes that her mother and grandmother made before her? Singer (The Maiden on the Moor, 1995, etc.) poses that somewhat serious question, and answers it with a fast-paced, superficial ghost story. Delia McCarthy (Deal) has just moved in with her grandmother, eager to make a fresh start in a new town and at a new high school. Still, something compels Deal to play the same ""Game"" she played at her last school; she is curiously amoral as she goes after a new friend's boyfriend and succeeds in winning him. With the help of the ghost of a girl that Deal's grandmother wronged years ago, Deal puts her own demons to rest, accepts her absent mother and chilly grandmother for who they are, and focuses her attention on faithful Laurie--a witty character who deserves a book of his own. It's a surprisingly earthbound ghost story; even more surprising is the benign manner in which Singer presents Deal's moral dilemma. The provocative premise gets only cursory treatment, and readers are bound to be disappointed.

Pub Date: May 1, 1997

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 198

Publisher: Henry Holt

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 1997

Categories: CHILDREN'S