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John David Anderson
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Riley's Ghost Kindle Edition

by John David Anderson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 20 ratings
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From John David Anderson, acclaimed author of Posted, comes a ghost story pulled from the darkest shadows of middle school.

Riley Flynn is alone. 

It feels like she’s been on her own since sixth grade, when her best friend, Emily, ditched her for the cool girls. Girls who don’t like Riley. Girls who decide one day to lock her in the science closet after hours, after everyone else has gone home.

When Riley is finally able to escape, however, she finds that her horror story is only just beginning. All the school doors are locked, the windows won’t budge, the phones are dead, and the lights aren't working. Through halls lit only by the narrow beam of her flashlight, Riley roams the building, seeking a way out, an answer, an explanation. And as she does, she starts to suspect she isn’t alone after all. 

While she’s always liked a good scary story, Riley knows there is no such thing as ghosts. But what else could explain the things happening in the school, the haunting force that seems to lurk in every shadow, around every corner? As she tries to find answers, she starts reliving moments that brought her to this night. Moments from her own life...and a life that is not her own.

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  1. Reading age
    8 - 12 years
  2. Print length
    363 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    3 - 7
  5. Publisher
    Walden Pond Press
  6. Publication date
    January 11, 2022
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  11. ISBN-13
    978-0062985989
  12. See all details
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From the Publisher

The Greatest Kid in the World Posted Ms. Bixby's Last Day Finding Orion Granted
The Greatest Kid in the World Posted Ms. Bixby's Last Day Finding Orion Granted
Customer Reviews
4.7 out of 5 stars
9
4.6 out of 5 stars
1,197
4.7 out of 5 stars
660
4.6 out of 5 stars
59
4.7 out of 5 stars
242
Price $12.99 $7.19 $6.99 $9.99 $9.99
More hilarious and heartwarming middle grade stories by John David Anderson! The story of Zeke Stahls--a thoroughly-average twelve-year-old who somehow finds himself in a competition to be named the World's Greatest Kid. A humorous, poignant, and original contemporary story about bullying, broken friendships, social media, and the failures of communication between kids. A funny, heartwarming, and heartbreaking story about three boys, one teacher, and a day none of them will ever forget. An unforgettable tale of love and laughter, of fathers and sons, of what family truly means, and of the ways in which we sometimes need to lose something in order to find ourselves. A heartfelt novel about a fairy-in-training and her first wish-granting assignment.
Stowaway Homebound One Last Shot Riley’s Ghost
Stowaway Homebound One Last Shot Riley’s Ghost
Customer Reviews
4.8 out of 5 stars
57
4.5 out of 5 stars
16
4.7 out of 5 stars
70
4.1 out of 5 stars
20
Price $7.99 $10.79 $8.47 $12.89
More hilarious and heartwarming middle grade stories by John David Anderson! The first book in a coming-of-age sci-fi duology about Leo, a kid trying to navigate the galaxy in order to save his family—and, possibly, the planet Earth. The conclusion to the epic sci-fi coming-of-age tale that began in Stowaway, which Booklist called "The Mandalorian meets Guardians of the Galaxy" in a starred review. A humorous and heartwarming story of family, friendship, and miniature golf. A ghost story pulled from the darkest shadows of middle school.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 5 Up—"Sadists. Barbarians. Seventh graders." Riley Flynn (who appears white) is locked inside her middle school after the last bell rings along with a possessed lab frog, the malevolent ghost of a former student, and memories of classmates who tease her mercilessly. As Riley tries to break out, her thoughts drift to daily life. She fights back against the bullies, but that's done more to cement her reputation as a misanthrope than it's done to slow the jeers. After school she comes home to lonely TV dinners while her parents work long shifts, and sometimes she lays in bed imagining what it feels like to die. Though she doesn't see it at first, Riley's parents show love, support, teach responsibility, encourage grit, and see her for who she truly is. As she uncovers who the ghost is and what it wants from her, what she learns shifts her perspective on her own life and helps her glimpse a future that might be better. Riley's feelings of fear, anger, sadness, frustration and hopelessness will resonate with early teen readers who are feeling high levels of stress, or who feel like outsiders. Like Ms. Bixby's Last Day, this book has a quiet pace and centers on the importance of friendship, the transformative power of being seen, and the gentle miracles they create when combined. It's also filled with the messiness of personal growth, the pain of adolescent friendships, a nuanced portrayal of being bullied/being the bully, and a sensitive look at adolescent mental health. VERDICT Lots of humor, a little horror, and a dash of the bizarre round things out. Highly recommended.—Amy Fellows

Review

Kids won't just love this book. They need it.

-- "Soman Chainani, New York Times bestselling author, on Ms. Bixby's Last Day"

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09292B6LX
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Walden Pond Press (January 11, 2022)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 11, 2022
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 3100 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 363 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0062985973
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 20 ratings

About the author

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John David Anderson

John David Anderson

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John David Anderson was born a long time ago to parents who loved him deeply and pretended to understand him sometimes. In 1983 he won the prestigious third place trophy in Little League and improved his handwriting grade from a D to a C. He is the author of critically acclaimed books for young people. He enjoys both writing and reading as a means of escape, though he's not always sure what he's running from (bills? feelings of inadequacy?). He attempts to use the Force on a daily basis, mostly to get his son to eat.

As yet he is unsuccessful.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
20 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Lori Ericson
5.0 out of 5 stars Writer Has Skills!
Reviewed in the United States on February 3, 2024
A very well-written story! Anderson pulls the reader in with his fantastic in-depth characterization and his talent at weaving words. I got this one at the library, but just ordered Posted from Amazon and plan to read more of Anderson.
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shopper
4.0 out of 5 stars This School is Haunted!!
Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2022
Riley Flynn is in middle school, which is a sad state of affairs, as middle school can be a quagmire of social dysfunction. Her best friend has ditched her for the mean girls, so add loneliness. Home isn't much better with her Dad, a train engineer, away from home for days on end, and her mother working long hours at the hospital, leaving Riley to fend for herself until late evening. On top of this, Riley is being bullied, but she has always been an independent sort, so she often responds with revenge, which she has come to realize is wrong (sometimes). That is the background of Riley's life in real time. Intertwined are flashbacks to her elementary days, which document her creative responses to being bullied, as well as wonderful descriptions of her father's ghost and horror stories, of which he has carefully explained the differences. This information comes in handy when Riley was forcibly locked into the science supply closet by the mean girls, and left to fend for herself for the rest of the night. She found she wasn't really alone, but to escape the closet and finally the school, she needs to unravel the the identities of the two ghosts, one who has taken over the body of a dissected frog. Both were students at the school in the '80s, and from the sounds of things not mush had changed. Schools can be eerie when they are deserted, and that sets the stage for some very scary episodes. Thoroughly enjoyed this book.
2 people found this helpful
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M Killian
5.0 out of 5 stars If these walls could talk...
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2023
Riley's middle school is haunted by all the drama and trauma its walls have seen over the years.

Riley is a bit of an outsider. She has a temper that scares others, but also puts a target on her as a way to press her buttons. She finally finds a friend in new girl Emily, but then Emily joins the volleyball team and starts hanging out with the popular girls there, leaving Riley behind. One night, the mean girls lock Riley in the science closet after school, while Emily watches and does nothing, and Riley has to find her way out.

This story is a giant metaphor for finding your way out of middle school, not only physically but emotionally as well. There are some ghosts of students past in the building and through some library/yearbook research, Riley finds out their identities. The big bad, Heather, was a girl who was bullied much like Riley is, and who had one close friend, Max, who one day didn't want her around anymore. Through learning about these ghosts and their past, Riley also learns about her own past and the choices she made that could have been different.

Reading this brought back all the middle school feels of people teasing someone and then when that person gets upset, telling them they are being too sensitive and can't take a joke. Also, coming home to an empty house after feeling alone all day. Parents who are loving, but who don't quite understand. And a lonely child who finally finds a friend, and then clings to that friend so desperately that it smothers the friend and makes them want to get away. Navigating these relationships is a lot like navigating the halls of a locked, haunted middle school with the unexpected around every corner, and I really appreciated that parallel.
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Lee
4.0 out of 5 stars Trying to fit in
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2022
Riley has always had a hard time fitting in and has been told she needs to control herself. Mom says ignore the people when they drag you down,but Riley knows it’s hard. One day she is locked in a science supply closet after she angers some girls. She manages to get out and one of the dissected frog begins talking to her. He tells her if you help me, I will help you.Riley tries everything to get out of school but finds she’s alone. Then she hears noises. As she walks around school, she finds “ghosts can take many forms, and the memories they carry give them power,” What does the ghost want? What keeps it there? Will Riley ever be able to escape from the school?
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An Amazon customer
3.0 out of 5 stars spooky but slow ghost story for tweens
Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2023
A lot of Anderson's work, like Ms. Bixby's Last Day and One Last Shot, has generous splashes of humor to make the serious stuff go down. This book really lacks that humorous element and it makes it much less attractive as a middle-school read. A ton of back story makes the main story drag and there were so few sympathetic characters, even Riley herself. On the other hand, it's a genuinely spooky story and I know that will be enough for some readers.
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