The International House of Dereliction

by Jacqueline Davies (Author)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

In this not-so-scary ghost story from Jacqueline Davies, bestselling author of the Lemonade War series, quirky, tool-wielding Alice Cannoli-Potchnik begins to repair the dilapidated mansion next door--only to discover the old house is home to ghosts, and they need mending, too!

Home is where the heart is. But can a house have a heart of its own? Ten-year-old Alice is moving for the eleventh time. She's lived in so many houses, each more broken than the last, that home to Alice is nothing more than a place you fix and then a place you leave. After all, who needs a permanent home when you're a whiz at fixing things? But when Alice arrives at her new home, she can't take her eyes off the house next door, the stately dark house that hulked in the dimming light.

The once-grand mansion, now dilapidated and condemned, beckons Alice; it's the perfect new repair job! As Alice begins to restore the House to its former splendor, she senses strange presences. Is there a heartbeat coming from the House's walls? Is someone looking at her? Soon she realizes she's not alone. Three ghosts have been watching, and they need Alice's help to solve their unfinished business. Will Alice be able to unravel the mysteries of the House and find her forever home . . . before it's too late?

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Kirkus

Starred Review
Only the stony of heart could fail to fall in love with clever, competent, resolute Alice or, for that matter, the supporting cast that includes her adorable parents and a host of unfailingly interesting ancestors. Well cast, well told, but mostly just terrific.

ALA/Booklist

An unconventional ghost story with an unusual heroine and a satisfying conclusion.

Publishers Weekly

Starred Review

An indefatigable 10-year-old resolves to help the restless spirits haunting the house next door move on to the afterlife in this wholesome ghost story by Davies (The Bridge Battle). In what her mother promises will be the white-cued family's last uprooting for a while, Alice Cannoli-Potchnik and her loving parents move into a run-down house on the edge of the college campus where her mother lectures. While exploring the new neighborhood, Alice is drawn to the condemned abode next door. After fixing the residence's damaged hearth--an easy feat for handy Alice, who's helped her father fix up their last 11 homes--she finds herself in the company of several ghosts, all with unfinished business preventing them from passing on. But Alice's mission to assist her ghostly neighbors is jeopardized when a demolition crew arrives to tear the house down. Spurred by Alice's ferocious determination, this cleverly plotted genealogical mystery delves into the specters' history as much as Alice's own, culminating in an exhilarating sequence of events that proves Davies's uncanny balance of whimsy and excitement. This mesmerizing Monster House-flavored tale is packed with oodles of heart. Ages 8-12. (July)

Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes



Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780063258099
Lexile Measure
-
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Clarion Books
Publication date
May 21, 2024
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV013030 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Multigenerational
JUV028000 - Juvenile Fiction | Mysteries, Espionage, & Detective Stories
JUV069000 - Juvenile Fiction | Ghost Stories
JUV073000 - Juvenile Fiction | Architecture
Library of Congress categories
Dwellings
Ghosts
Ghost stories
Haunted houses
Remodeling
Novels

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