THE HAUNTED HOUSE NEXT DOOR

Newly arrived with his parents in seemingly quiet Kersville, an anxious young Latine boy discovers that his new house isn’t quite as normal and boring as he’d hoped.

This graphic reboot of the opener to a proliferating series of early chapter books dispenses with most of the explication but sticks closely to the original’s plotline and dialogue. Hardly has Andres Miedoso—who shares a name with the tale’s author—had time to unpack before a flurry of weird noises and events sends him hurrying over to consult with his grinning, brown-skinned new neighbor, who earlier handed him a business card provocatively labeled “Desmond Cole, Ghost Patrol.” Yes, there’s a ghost in Andres’ house—a jagged, seething cloud of ectoplasm that makes a terrifying first impression…but then gleefully chows down on some unfortunate lasagna and, after paying the gastric price, admits to being a sad, lonely specter searching for a permanent home. By the end, all three have bonded, Andres has a card of his own, and the stage is set for further supernatural exploits. The illustrations are closely based on those in the book’s antecedent, with the addition of bright colors that nicely show off Desmond’s big personality—and the massive green sliming Andres gets when the ghost upchucks all over him. The chills are, if anything, even lighter than the original’s, and the fresh format may draw some new fans.

Ghostly fun for the gentlest of readers.