Copyright Date:
2023
Edition Date:
2023
Release Date:
08/01/23
Illustrator:
Harney, Jennifer,
Pages:
131 pages
ISBN:
1-645-95167-7
ISBN 13:
978-1-645-95167-4
Dewey:
Fic
LCCN:
2023012676
Dimensions:
21 cm.
Language:
English
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews
Bella Gosi's new town is stranger than it seems.Bella finds it hard to believe that Shiver-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts, can possibly be as special as her mom promises. After all, her friends, dad, and favorite things are still back in New York City. Bella feels a spark of hope when she meets a boy named Cooper in front of the possibly haunted theater her mother purchased earlier this summer. While browsing a trunk full of film reels, the two discover a small bat that transforms into a pale-skinned boy named Bram. Bram, a vampire with a thirst for sugary liquids, got lost after running away from home-like Bella, he was frustrated when his parents decided to uproot the family. So Bella and Cooper decide to help reunite Bram with his family. Character ages are not specified, but illustrations suggest that they are preteens, and Bella's attempts at agency as she helps Bram are appropriate and understandable for an older child in an unfamiliar setting, trying to discover the boundaries of independence. While the kids face frustrating challenges and sometimes break the rules, they clearly have loving caregivers willing to give them room to grow and be who they are. Dynamic, emotive black-and-white illustrations break up the text; watercolor-esque flourishes of semitonal gray along the edges add visual interest. Bella is tan-skinned in the art, while Cooper presents Black.Wonder and magic wait to be discovered in these pages. (Paranormal fiction. 7-10)
For fans of Eerie, Elementary, Bailey School Kids, and The Notebook of Doom, the first book in a magical, spooky new chapter book series about friendship, community restoration and involvement, and helping your neighbors . . . even if some of them may be monsters.
Bella Gossi just moved from New York City to the Massachusetts beach town of Shiver-by-the-Sea to live with her Uncle Van. Bella’s excited about helping her mom fix up the old movie theater, but she’s already missing her old home and her old friends, and just driving through downtown, it’s pretty clear that this place has seen better days.
After meeting Cooper and his adorable basset hound, Casper, things start looking up. But when mom tasks them with clearing out an old trunk from the theater and picking the first movie they’ll show, that’s when the trouble begins. Out of the trunk pops a bat! But not just any bat . . . a kid vampire. A very hungry, very scared kid vampire, who’s lost and doesn’t know how to get home to his family.
Bella and Cooper are a little frightened at first, too, but soon they’re on a mission to help Bram find his way home, because that’s what real friends do.