ghostgirl

Upon finishing Ghostgirl I’m not really sure how I feel. On the one hand, it could be darkly funny while still managing cute romance at times and on the other, it could be very shallow and just kind of missed the mark other times.

So let’s break this thing down list style!

Likes:
1. The cutesy ending. What can I say? I’m a sucker for a super cute ending despite the fact that it doesn’t always make sense or fit very well.

2. Charlotte’s growth. Boy howdy did it take FOR-EV-ER, but it did happen and I can totally appreciate that.

3. Scarlet’s character. I just liked her dark, sarcastic funny personality. It was really enjoyable to read about.

Dislikes:
1. Charlotte. I know her character flaw was her selfishness, but man did it really get on my nerves.

2. Damen. He started becoming a better guy towards the end of the book, but it was almost like he was two different people: beginning of book Damen and end of book Damen. The first one was kind of a big fat jerk.

3. The “what just happened” factor. Sometimes I felt like I had just missed something major because one thing was happening and then BAM the very next sentence everything was resolved or something else entirely was happening. I’m fairly certain that wasn’t all me :P

4. The “something’s missing” factor. Throughout the entire reading save for, maybe, the last 30 pages the story wasn’t really grabbing me. It just seemed like it had that IT factor missing or something. I really don’t know how to explain it, but you avid book readers problem know what I mean.

The Nutshell: In all, not my favorite book. It was a quick read and I was intrigued by the ending, so I may pick up the next book in the series, but it’s not likely. Ghostgirl is darkly quirky and at times humorous read, but overall seemed to be missing that oomph that really draws me into a story. In short, this wasn’t for me, but someone else might still find it enjoyable.

Reader reviewed by red

my mother bought this book .. when i saw it , my attention was captured easily .. the book cover and the title are intriguing enough .. i read it for 4 hours .. i really liked it because i can relate to one of the characters , scarlet kensington .. her personality is somewhat similar to mine .. the plot was very interesting .. the funny part is , the main character died because of a gummy bear ! how sarcastic ! the quotes in the beginning of every chapters are great ! the introductions too .. this is something worth reading .. :) 

Reader reviewed by Sarima89

Is
a book aimed to younger readers, like 12-14 years-old and I think it
manages in a good way all the important subjects like accept yourself,
and that kind of stuff. Sometimes it gets a little bit like a self-help
book, but I totally understand thats a vital part of the book, for the
little girls who read this, and even someone like me, a twenty year old
it has a really important message about life.

Reader reviewed by GirlwiththeBraids

Popularity, the handsome Damen, and a friend is all Charlotte wanted. The new school year would bring all these things closer to Charlotte, she knew it, if only she changed herself a tad bit. But the first day of junior year, things dont go as planned. After a deadly incident involving a gummy bear, Charlotte finds herself on the Other Side of the school. She is able to be on the outside looking in, without the Living Kids seeing her staring with eager eyes: something she always felt but finally came true. It isnt exactly a dream though because now Damen cant fall in love with her! Then Charlotte finds out she is still in high school but having to learn from a dead teacher about Deadiquette, though her hope to become popular is still shining. But when Charlotte discovers that one of the Living Kids can see her, her hope only shines brighter &

ghostgirl was enjoyable after the first 30 pages. The beginning was dull but when I met the Dead Kids, everything was becoming fun. Though the dialogue was predictable, I couldnt get enough of it! Im not a fan of the narration (third person but completely descriptive) and the death references took up a lot of space. Things like dying to be popular and he doesnt even know Im alive were funny the first time, but they soon became overused.

Charlotte was selfish and only cared about herself (she even admitted to it) but this is the story of how hard she tried to overcome that. Her logic was interesting and her decisions made the storyline twist and turn with every chapter. The Dead Kids added so much to the story that I cant imagine it without them. They each explained their Life and their Death which was utterly fascinating. Author Tonya Hurleys voice is fun and distinctive but Id like to see how she would use it in a different book.

Reader reviewed by WilowRaven

Charlotte Usher is dead but she isn't taking it very well. She's pissed
that a gummy bear did her in and she isn't about to let a little thing
like death stand in the way of her getting the perfect Midnight Kiss
from her high school crush or winning the respect of Miss Popularity.
I
only had one major problem with this book - I could not stand
Charlotte! She was selfish, shallow and well, kinda stupid to boot.
Surprisingly, this didn't ruin the book for me :)
Through the course
of her mandatory attendance Dead Ed with the other Dead Kids, and all
the trouble she gets herself into trying to win over her crush Damen,
Charlotte meets up with some pretty cool characters. My favorite is
Scarlet - the only living person who can see Charlotte.
There were
some plot holes to contend with - no mention of Charlotte's family -
the fact that there wasn't even 1 person who Charlotte was friendly
with before she died - the stereotypical popular girls who in the end,
really didn't play all that big a part in the story. I could go on but
I don't want to give the wrong idea. I actually really liked this book.
A quick read, funny at times, with likable characters (ok, maybe not
Charlotte, but I liked everyone else :)
Hurley has written a sequel and I'm curious to see how the story plays out further.
All and all - I give 3 stars.

Reader reviewed by Beth

This book was fun. I enjoyed
reading it. The biggest problem I had was that I was unable to really
connect with the plot. It didn't suck me in; I was able to put it down.
The characters were all fairly stereotypical, but that was the point.
This book looked at all of the stereotypes that exist in high school
and blew them up. The addition of death and coming back after death
just made it more interesting. The concept was really great, but I just
don't feel like it was realized to its full potential. Despite the
shortcoming that I felt it had, it was still something that I found fun
to read. The characters were all engaging, although at times
Charlotte's single-mindedness was a touch annoying. They all played
their parts perfectly, and really made the book enjoyable. This is a
good read for those who like observing and poking fun at the
stereotypes of high school. I can't wait to read the next book, which
comes out soon.

Reader reviewed by Erica

Ghostgirl
Tonya Hurley
Publisher: Little, Brown Young Readers
Release Date: August 1, 2008
Pages: 328
Reading Level: Young Adult

Rating: 4 stars

Now I lay me down to sleep,

I pray the Lord my soul to keep.

And if I should die before I awake,

I pray the popular attend my wake.

Charlotte Usher feels practically invisible at school, and then one day she really is invisible. Even worse: she's dead. And all because she choked on a gummy bear. But being dead doesn't stop Charlotte from wanting to be popular; it just makes her more creative about achieving her goal.

If you thought high school was a matter of life or death, wait till you see just how true that is. In this satirical, yet heartfelt novel, Hurley explores the invisibility we all feel at some times and the lengths we'll go to be seen.

First off, I'd just like to say this is probably the coolest book I've ever seen! The hardcover is awesome! The lining of the pages are silver, with cool designs on every page. Plus the cover, is like a coffin with the shadow of the main character. It's also a unique size, which just adds more to it!

Tonya Hurley's Ghostgirl was a fun read with a great plot! While some of the characters were rather stereotypical, it was still great to read about Charlotte and her "quest to popularity" even when she's dead. The basis of the plot was an original placed within today's high school setting.

Charlotte, the main character, got on my nerves some of the time, she needed to get over herself. But that's just part of the story.

With her debut novel, Tonya Hurley definately put a new spin on that of the afterlife.

Reader reviewed by Megan the Librarian

Although I'm a firm believer in the old adage that you can't (or shouldn't) judge a book by its cover, I'll be honest and say the cover is the main reason I picked up this book.  However, in this case, it was a good choice.  I was drawn in by the allusions the author made to classic Gothic literature and current music and poetry (the most obvious being the protagonist's name -- Charlotte Usher) as well as the style of writing that reminded me of 1950s video reels that showed characters doing things while a single narrator provided voice-over commentary. 

These are the things that drew me in, but they lost a little bit of their charm about halfway through the novel's silver trimmed pages.  The story itself was a bit predictable -- the popular boy is deeper than people imagine him to be, the loner girl has more feelings than she wants people to realize, the teen queen's true personality is revealed -- and the reveal of Charlotte's "unfinished" business came too late in the story for my tastes. 

However, with that being said, it was an easy, entertaining read with just enough novelty to redeem the slightly played-out nature of the plot. The fact that there is a website to accompany the story is also a redeeming quality.  I believe this book will appeal to a specific subset of my student population, but not all students will enjoy what's housed within the cover.

Reader reviewed by Amanda

I guess I'll start off right away by telling you about the horrible characters. Charlotte seemed like an average pretty likable character at first but THEN you learn about her plan to become popular...First of all I could really care less about popularity but Charlotte took it a little too far. Especially after she dies and still tries to get Damen to go out with her. Seriously? You think this is how you're supposed to do to make peace? REALLY?! Because you don't even really know him. Get over it mmkay? But that was practically the whole premise of the book. It wasn't horrible though, there were some redeeming qualities. For example the cute illustrations, and more importantly Scarlet. Scarlet was a funny and interesting character. Pretty much the only reason I continued on. I probably would of gave up if it wasn't for the cheering scene. And I will admit the plot was really original. It makes you think about life after death, and I book that makes me think about worldly things gets some brownie points. Overall I think Ghostgirl was a cute read but wasn't really my thing due to Charlotte's popularity fetish and delusion.

Reader reviewed by Insert Book Title

 love this book! The writing is witty and capturing. It is very unique. Charlotte has never been noticed, but she has a plan to change all that. However, her plan is foiled by her own death. Now she is a part of Dead Ed, and she is the only hope that her Dead classmates have of moving on. But Charlotte is still stuck in the world of the living, and she refuses to give up her get-popular scheme. Will Charlotte be able to let go of life and realize she is dead? Charlotte is selfish but funny. I found myself getting so annoyed with her because she couldn't see anything past her crush. (She makes up for it in the end). She was redeemed by adding spark to Tonya's novel.