Horror at the Haunted House

I am going to start by saying that the picture on the left is much better and more modern than the copy I have in my possession loaned from the library. So if you choose to check it out yourself, don't be disappointed, but they will not look the same. Horror at the Haunted House by Peg Kehret was a Caudill Nominee in 1996 and the quickest book I've read in a while.

I'm going to call it a beginning ghost story. In fact, I think the word "horror" in the title is a bit strong. In the Children's Department, we have a sticker for ghost stories. Either it is white with a red outline of a ghost - floating sheet with eyes, or it is purple with a multi-hued ghost - floating sheet with eyes. But you won't see all of the sticker on the spine of a juvenile book. That is because those stickers arrive with the word "horror" beneath the ghost and we carefully snip it off first.

This book stars two siblings, Ellen and Corey Streater, and they have appeared in another Kehret book before called Terror at the Zoo. Decatur Public doesn't own it so you'll have to request it and it is NOT about ghosts. Apparently, the kids get the chance to spend the night at a zoo, but get locked inside with an escaped convict instead. Kehret does like to go for thrills and chills!

Ellen and Corey's grandmother has a best friend who works for the town's Historical Society. The town has received, as a donation, a magnificent mansion along with its contents. The mansion is in a state of disrepair and the town would like to raise money for new wiring and plumbing and such. The Society is turning the mansion into a haunted house for Halloween and selling tickets to those who wish to walk through it. In every room, a murder or execution out of history is being reenacted and local celebrities are participating.

The best friend asks the kids if they would like to participate as well. Corey is to be a child king who is beheaded at the guillotine. Ellen will be Joan of Arc who was burned at the stake. Every night, Ellen is loosely tied to a stake where she pretends to be calm and pray while flames leap around her. The fire isn't real, but the sound effects and the smell effects all aid to make the illusion work.

There is also something special housed in the mansion. A grand collection of Wedgwood pottery can be found in the dining room. The collection was started by Lydia Clayton, the first mistress of the house. When her husband was forced to travel for business, he would always bring a new piece back with him for her as a gift. The donor provided that the collection would stay in the house, intact and untouched, on the shelves where it always resided.

Ellen is intrigued with a portion of the collection called Fairylustre. She is even allowed to hold a piece, a little octagonal bowl, but when she is asked to let her little brother, Corey, hold it, her hands turn to ice. Ellen is repeatedly drawn into the dining room to look at the Fairylustre pottery, and nearly every time she has a strange encounter. From cold winds, to disembodied hands, and a face in the mirror, Ellen is scared by what she sees, but she can't keep away from the Wedgwood collection.

Ellen must search for clues, read up on the history of the mansion, and seek out help in answering the questions that arise. Why is a ghost intent on protecting the Wedgwood pottery? Who is putting the pottery in jeopardy? Why is Ellen the only one who sees her? Why can the ghost follow her to her home? Will she ever be able to sleep peacefully in her bed again? Kehret wraps it up neatly and quickly with a dose of danger.