Curse of the Boggin

Gr 4–6—Feisty Marcus O'Mara isn't afraid to do what's right. He takes a stand against his bullying teacher and earns himself several days of detention. While in detention, Marcus spies a ghostly man clad in pajamas and, more disturbingly, a raging bull trashing the school's trophy cases. Unfortunately, his principal cannot see the bull, nor is there any evidence of the damage that Marcus witnessed. Instead, he earns himself more detentions and the wrath of his adoptive mother, who really seems to hate him lately. After a second sighting of the pajama-clad ghost and being told to "surrender the key," Marcus intends to solve this mystery. He is a self-described outsider with just two good friends, Lu, who is into roller derby, and Theo, who is "straight-A smart." Once Marcus gets his hands on the key, he discovers it leads to a mysterious library curated by an odd, old librarian, filled with unfinished stories of the dead. The boy is tasked with finishing the story of a man in pajamas who happens to have a connection to his birth parents. Middle grade readers eager for horror will find many scary thrills in this cinematic page-turner with a diverse cast of characters. MacHale knows how to ratchet up the suspense as the likable narrator and his best friends pool their talents in an effort to fight an ancient enemy.