Ghostly fun!

I read this book to my kids (kindergarten & second grade) during our spring break week, and it was a big hit. The story is about a boy who is terrified to go down to the basement of his apartment building. His mother makes him go down to get something, telling him not to be silly. When he gets there, to his horror, there actually is a ghost in the basement. He is terrified, and is subsequently teased by his annoying big sister, but when he turns to his grandmother for help, she gives him some surprising advice: to go talk to her friend Hetty Hyssop, an elderly woman who just happens to be an accomplished ghosthunter.

Tom takes her advice on how to rid himself of the smelly, slimy ghost in the basement, only to find himself feeling sorry for the ghost when he has it at his mercy -- it has been evicted from its home by a much scarier, more powerful ghost. Against his better judgment, Tom returns to Hetty Hyssop to ask for help to get the basement ghost back to its rightful home. What ensues is a funny, exciting adventure that kept us up reading until way too late at night.

This is the first book in a series written by Cornelia Funke, author of Dragon Rider, Inkheart, and The Thief Lord. The Thief Lord, by the way, was turned into a fairly enjoyable film - see the entry at IMDB for more information.

And for more information about Cornelia Funke, go to http://www.corneliafunke.de/en/index.html.

Ghosthunters and the Incredibly Revolting Ghost by Cornelia Funke (Chickenhouse, 2006)