Cover Image: Ghosts Unveiled! (Creepy and True #2)

Ghosts Unveiled! (Creepy and True #2)

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Member Reviews

This book was really quite interesting, very tame but most enjoyable.
Would definitely recommend for use around Halloween with younger teens and older middle grade children as I think this would be a good level of spookiness for them.

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This is a collection of quite gentle ghost stories. Looking at folklore and tradition, grouped together by theme. It would be good as part of a Halloween curriculum, with nothing too traumatic included. I would have liked some more interesting debate or analysis of the stories but I guess that wasn’t the authors intention.
A solid book and I’d recommend it, but I didn’t go wow either.

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Argh, I had a completely wrong expectation of what this book would be, so that I didn't really enjoy it because it wasn't that at all. This is not completely my fault; the book is the 2nd in the Creepy and True series, and the first book Mummies Exposed!: Creepy and True was a fascinating look at the different mummies found all around the world and what scientists learn from them and what they meant to the people who placed them. So I thought this book would look at what was true in various ghost stories and why people believed in ghosts and what kinds of situations would make ghost sightings likely. That is not what this book is.

Instead it's a collection of ghost stories told all over the world, grouped loosely together by theme (dog ghosts, etc.) The author accepts all stories as true; not necessarily that the ghost is real, but that people really said that this is what they saw and believed. And the author seems to be leaning toward the idea that there's something there for most of these stories, which I was a bit shocked about. There's no engagement with any other hypothesis, and not much investigation into what would be possible explanations or even what makes it worthwhile for people to see ghosts. I guess the latter gets a tiny bit of treatment when some ghosts stories are put in a cultural context, but this book had a lot less science or questions that I wanted.

This book is probably better for people who haven't read the first one. If I had come to it expecting a compilation of ghost stories, I'd have been happy because it does that quite well. But I came to it expecting science and investigations and a lot of skepticism, and I couldn't let go of wanting that. This one leans a lot harder on the creepy and just gently pats true.

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This is a really neat collections of very short stories. Kids who are interested in "real" ghost stories and hauntings will love this. Because each story is very short, it is more likely kids will pick this up and read. Great collection.

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E ARC provided by the publisher through Netgalley

Ghosts are something that middle school students still think might be real; we have a lot of conversations about this when I declare that speculative fiction involves "things that are unlikely to happen in your backyard", and sometimes students try to prove that ghosts are real by citing the fact that books about ghosts, like this one, are in the nonfiction section!

The stories are all very short, and arranged in themed chapters. We are delighted with creepy tales of ghost dogs and cats and ghosts at schools, and go further afield to ghosts in famous places like the White House, ghosts at war, and ghosts on trains and ships. There are even summer tales and holiday tales, and a story from the author's own experiences.

This book has a wide range of ghost stories from around the world. It was great to see this diversity, which ranges from a Missing Hitchhiker Tale from Somalia to a the haunted Music Hall in Cincinnati near the author's (and my) home! The discussion of La Lloronna was especially interesting, since she figures largely in Mejia's Paola Santiago and the River of Tears.

This was similar to Williams's recent True Hauntings: Deadly Disasters, but the stories were much shorter. I liked this length; the stories packed a creepy punch, and Hollihan gives plenty of tales to up the creep factor! There are even a few illustrations and photographs to add to the feeling that these things really happened! This would be perfect for starting a language arts class, since most of the stories are under two pages long, and would make a great resource for sleepovers or camp outs. Remember to hold that flashlight under your chin for increased spookiness!

One really neat thing about the notes in the E ARC was that they included links to the article that could be clicked on, taking you right to the source information! There's also a nice selected bibliography with books as well as online articles.

I'll have to go back and pick up Mummies Exposed!: Creepy and True (2019), especially since Ancient Egypt is in our 6th grade curriculum, (Although this apparently discusses other instances of mummification!) and make sure that I have this great volume on hand for Halloween.

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Ghosts Unveiled! is a combination of folklore, ghost stories, and dark history. I assure you that this is not just a theme young people wish to read only during Halloween. I teach college undergraduate courses on Ghost Stories and Haunted History, and Dark Tourism and they are filled with students who engage with public history while being fascinated by ghost stories and haunted experiences. I can imagine that many of my students would enjoy reading this text with their younger family members.

The text begins with ghost dogs and cats (not the strongest chapter in my opinion) and continues with wraiths, ghostly hitchhiker and lady in white stories, holiday haunts (one of my favorite chapters) and concludes with the author's own haunted experience.

Well-researched and told in a casual, accessible language that is a page-turner. I look forward to picking up a full color version when it is in print.

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An interesting, thoughtfully researched, and well laid out book for children interested in the paranormal. It would be perfect as part of a Halloween program. The stories are of an ideal length to hold attention, and the pictures will add visual interest when they are printed in full color. I loved that stories from around the world were included, as well as both historical & contemporary tales.

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Ghosts Unveiled is the second book in the Creepy and True series. I absolutely loved the first book, Mummies Exposed, so jumped right on the chance to review the newest book. This newest book in the series is just as good as the first book. It has lots of photos and illustrations, tells interesting tales and explains a lot of terms and topics related to ghosts. Very interesting and engaging!

This book could easily be used in a classroom setting. It has a table of contents, a thorough index, glossary and notes section. Plus, it's written to appeal to middle grade level children....but not in a simplistic way. It's not simplified...but very engaging, using humor and plain language. My review copy had black and white photos, but the final version of the book will be full-color. This book is visually engaging and easy to read. It would appeal to curious, reluctant readers or would be excellent supplemental/entertaining reading for any student (or adults!) interested in the supernatural.

This is an excellent series! I'm definitely looking forward to the next book! Not sure what topic it will address, but I know it will be well done!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Abrams Kids. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

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Ghosts Unveiled! starts by listing two pages worth of names for ghosts. Close to two hundred were listed. Very impressive. The author then weaves tales of haunted animals still roaming the earth, even in the US Capitol building. Ghost Unveiled! Takes readers on a ride of urban legends and more well-known ghost stories (historical people and places) and weaves other spooky tales throughout the book. Tales of various forms of haunted transportation are examined leaving readers to decide if any place is safe from hauntings. Students should enjoy reading Ghosts Unveiled!, although I fear some attention spans might struggle with the length but there are enough examples within the book to keep readers interested and flipping the pages. I liked how the author included the primary documentation of newspaper and magazine accounts of the tales she was describing. My hope is that the final copy of the book contains more illustrations to help hold the readers’ interest. This would be an excellent book to reference around Halloween and it has the potential to be a popular book within school libraries.

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If you or your child enjoy a good ghost story - this is a great book to read together! Full of different stories from different continents, this will be one book to leave you feeling a little spooked - and yet intrigued with the many different ghost stories from across the world.

I read through this in a few hours, and I will let my son read it as well. Perfect for an evening read!

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If you ever wanted to discover 193 terms for "ghost," here's your answers. Seriously, I think that's very useful for writers who specialize in horror: many were new to me. This well-researched collection is designed for young readers (I'd say upper elementary and middle-grade), and contains a plethora of Ghost lore. There's plenty of chills to be had too, so please avoid reading late at night. [I'm still shivering over the Connecticut Black Dog.]

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