A Friend for Ghost
by Suzanne Kaufman (Author)
A loveable, lonely ghost meets a buoyant new companion, proving that friendship is never truly out of reach.
Most of the time
no one noticed Ghost.
It isn't always easy for a ghost to make friends; even a rosy-cheeked ghost with big glasses.
Ghost lives in a noisy, diverse city where children play and laugh, and longs to join in. But most people look right through Ghost. When a bright red balloon wanders Ghost's way, the connection is instantaneous. Together they try everything Ghost had ever hoped to share with a friend. But when Ghost's balloon gets lost, Ghost learns that when you're looking for a friend, a friend might find you.
With A Friend for Ghost, Suzanne Kaufman, New York Times Bestselling illustrator of All Are Welcome, brings watercolors to life in an utterly charming tale about putting yourself out there and finding the ones who get you.
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School Library Journal
Friendship isn't easy—especially for Ghost. Reminiscent of Mac Barnett and Christian Robinson's Leo: A Ghost Story, this lovely title features Ghost, who is lonely and in search of a friend. "Always alone—in the crowd." On one special day Ghost makes a friend (a red balloon) and they share everything, until the expected disaster takes place and this friend drifts away. The emotional journey of Ghost is captured through expressive illustrations of Ghost and Ghost's surroundings. Ghost does not have a personal pronoun which creates a wonderful opening for classroom or story-hour discussion about the use of gender pronouns and gender stereotypes. Kaufman's detailed and action-packed illustrations appear to be watercolors and do not overwhelm the relatively simple story of the universal search for friendship, and the opportunity for finding friends when and where it's least expected. VERDICT Recommended for libraries looking for sweet ghost stories as well as titles on friendship and the challenges of making friends.—John Scott
Copyright 2022 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.Publishers Weekly
Attic-dwelling Ghost, who has big round eyeglasses and a beseeching face, seems fated to be "always alone in the crowd." Though animals occasionally take notice, Ghost can't even get the attention of the city family, portrayed with white skin, who live in the same house. When a big balloon as red as Ghost's apple cheeks floats within reach, Ghost draws a smiley face on it, and the two become inseparable. The balloon's departure back to the sky prompts a frantic search (Ghost papers playground participants with "MISSING FRIEND" posters), but a turn suggests that perhaps the balloon isn't lost after all. Using ink and watercolor, Kaufman's emotionally rich, sketchlike compositions--of sad Ghost on a busy urban playground, of the balloon offering Ghost steadfast companionship as a scary thunderstorm rages outside--exude immediacy and empathy. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)
Copyright 2022 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.Hornbook
Review quotes
JUV017030 - Juvenile Fiction | Holidays & Celebrations | Halloween
JUV069000 - Juvenile Fiction | Ghost Stories
Picture books
Ghosts
Ghost stories
Loneliness
Balloons
