43 Old Cemetery Road Book One: Dying To Meet You

As a reader, I really enjoyed this novel. It told the story of a young boy named Seymour who was abandoned by his parents and left to whoever rented the haunted house that he lived in. An old, stuffy author named Ignatius B. Grumply rented the house on the mission to get over a writer’s block that he had for twenty years. He found out that Seymour may not have been telling lies about the ‘supposed’ ghost that lived in the cupola of the house. This ghost, named Olive, lived in that house and vowed to haunt the house until she could publish her own book. She had been rejected numerous amounts of times when she was alive. Grumply at first had thought that all the tricks and weird things that happened in the house was Seymour. But soon Olive revealed herself to him and convinced Grumply to write a book with her. Grumply, Seymour, and Olive hit some bumps in the road as they each tried to learn how to live with one another. But in the end, Grumply, Seymour, and Olive live happily together.

This novel was very different from traditional chapter books: there were no chapters! Instead it looked at other types of writing styles and told a story through them. As a teacher, I may use this novel for students who are struggling with their writing skills. The story unfolded in front of the audience by using letters, newspapers, illustrations, captions, and mail. Teachers can explain to students how you can convey information through each of these methods of writing. The novel even showed bits and pieces of Grumply’s writing process and thoughts as he was beginning to write a book. This could be used as an example for students to see that it is okay to make mistakes in their writing. Also it may help teachers to educate students on how to pay more attention not only to the writing on the page but also what is communicated between the lines of a book. Students can use this book to learn more about family issues. Seymour definitely did not have the easiest home and family life, so this may be encouraging to students that things will always get better. It also gives them a simple character to relate to. Students can also learn how to distinguish characters from one another. Using an anchor chart to separate them all would be a great and simple way for them to have to pay close attention to who is talking (especially since most of the book is written in letters to one another). This novel is also nice for students to be able to pay close attention to minor details. For example, the handwriting changes as a new person is writing a letter or typing. Being a series book, this is a great read for students and gives them the opportunity to continue on with the rest of the books! This novel is a great tool for teachers and students to use in the classroom.

43 Old Cemetery Road Book One: Dying To Meet You

Author: Kate Klise

Illustrated by: M. Sarah Klise

Year Published: 2009