Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | J FICTION HAR | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Stillwater Public Library | J FICTION HAR | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
Evidence
1. A snicker. Soft but clear.
2. The mess
3. White teeth gleaming
in the shadows
Possibilities
1. Vampires
2. Ghosts
3. Goblins
4. Werewolves
5. Fairies
To do
1. Record evidence in logbook
2. Do not tell Mom and Dad!
3. Read (again!) The Little People:
A Comprehensive History of
Hobgoblins, Pixies, Brownies,and Sprites
4. Set a trap
5. Set up motion-sensor camera
6. Ask Will and Franny for help?
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-The daughter of paranormal investigators, Poppy Malone comes face-to-face (or perhaps knee-to-face) with a wily, old gnome in the attic of her new home. Now she thinks she knows what's causing the general chaos throughout the house in the hours since they moved in-the electricity failing, doors collapsing, and food containers exploding. The premise for this fantasy, set in the steaming heat of a Texas summer, is a good one, but the narrative falls short in its believability, and the characterization of everyone except Poppy is weak. Integral to the story are her three siblings, yet readers learn little about them except for the fact that one is annoying, another lethargic, and the third wayward. Poppy is likable and, for the most part, exhibits the true characteristics of a girl on the cusp of 10 years old. Inexplicably, she continually doubts the solid evidence of a veritable company of gnomes, including numerous sightings and even conversations, despite the fact that her family traipses around the world looking to authenticate the existence of otherworldly creatures. It's also unbelievable that Poppy never tells her parents about the intruders, even after her incorrigible four-year-old brother is kidnapped by gnomes and replaced with one of their own. The rationale for this: not to upset Mrs. Malone. Poppy's mother is a professional ghost hunter; would she really be unnerved by a colony of gnomes? Students might be happy to follow Poppy on further adventures, but not before a generous dose of pragmatism makes its way into the story.-Margo Doble Schmidt, Convent of the Sacred Heart, Greenwich, CT (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
An itinerant family moves into a rambling old house in Austin, Tex., in this highly entertaining launch to Harper's (The Juliet Club) the Unseen World of Poppy Malone series. When minor mishaps immediately occur, the Malone parents, bumbling paranormal investigators, are convinced that a "Dark Presence" is haunting the house and vow to track it down (" `A Dark Presence, hard at work.' [Mrs. Malone] sighed happily. `We are going to have such fun,' "). Nine-year-old Poppy, a committed skeptic and aspiring scientist, believes there is a rational explanation, yet after she encounters a goblin in the attic, Poppy discovers it isn't the only prankster involved. Soon mayhem erupts-tapping noises keep everyone awake at night, computers falter, possessions disappear-and the replacement of the rambunctious youngest Malone, Rolly, with a (very polite) changeling has Poppy and her two remaining siblings embarking on a search for their missing brother. The book shines through the consistently amusing dynamics and dialogue among the Malones; Harper has abundant fun with the Malone parents' eccentricities, and kids will too. Readers will want more from this family. Ages 8-12. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Two worlds collide in this jaunty and easily digestible story of magic and domestic mayhem. Poppy Malone's parents are investigators of the paranormal -- ghosts, poltergeists, vampires, etc. In response, Poppy has become a hard-nosed, science-based skeptic. Then she spots a goblin, disguised as a garden gnome. Using her parents' equipment and methods, she tries to investigate this unwelcome phenomenon. Her project takes on new immediacy when she suspects that her baby brother has been kidnapped by the goblins and a changeling left in his place. She commandeers her older brother and sister to accompany her on a rescue mission. Life in the Malone household tends toward the one-note, with buffoon parents, lazy brother, sullen teen sister, and unrelieved domestic slapstick. Life belowground, with goblins Glitch, Muddle, and Bother, its mildly satirical echoes of humankind, and its touch of menace, is more compelling and funny. As the Malone family moves often and as the population of the fairy world is large and varied, further adventures for Poppy are pretty much guaranteed. sarah ellis (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
(Fantasy. 8-11)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Poppy Malone wasn't the kind of girl who saw goblins. So begins this first entry in the Unseen World of Poppy Malone series, a light fantasy tale of nine-year-old Poppy and her experiences as a goblin hunter. Poppy's family, including her twin brother, an older sister, and an impish baby brother, has relocated for the eighteenth time in her life, this time to an antiquated lavender house in Austin, Texas. Her eccentric, intellectual parents were recently awarded a university grant for paranormal investigation. Although the rest of her family firmly believes in dark forces and unseen powers, Poppy is a skeptic, the type of logical girl who wears her watch to bed and blames most all human emotions on misfiring brain neurons. Yet she finds herself in an existential pickle when she spots a living, breathing goblin in the family's new attic. Could she be dreaming, or do the unseen phantoms that her parents tout actually exist? A satisfying tale for skeptical tweens, who will eagerly await Poppy's further adventures.--Anderson, Eri. Copyright 2010 Booklist
