Horn Book

Olive C. Spence, the ghost of a never-published children's writer, encounters Ignatius B. Grumply, a (live) children's author experiencing writer's block. Together they write a ghost story, illustrated by eleven-year-old Seymour Hope. The fun here is in the narrative equipment--letters, e-mails, newspaper extracts, cast list--and embedded jokes. Mock-gothic fans will be eager to revisit 43 Old Cemetery Road in the anticipated sequels.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-6 When former best-selling children's author I.B. Grumply moves into a Victorian mansion in Ghastly, IL, to write the latest installment in his "Ghost Tamer" series, he is hindered by more than just his overwhelming case of writer's block. He is dismayed to find the mansion already occupied by an 11-year-old boy named Seymour Hope, his cat, and Olive C. Spence, a ghost living in the cupola who is unhappy because she never managed to publish her books in her lifetime. Similar to the Klises' other offerings, the story is successfully told through letters, newspaper clippings, drawings, and related devices. Although Grumply has written ghost tales, he himself is a nonbeliever, and Olive and Seymour attempt to convince him. They then collaborate on a book about their own experiences, including the possibility of the demolition of the mansion, a ghost who falls in love with the occupant of her house, and Seymour's parents and their lack of responsibility for his care. This first title in a new series will appeal to readers, especially reluctant ones, as it moves quickly and leaves its audience eager for book two, which is announced in this ghastly and fun tale. Michele Shaw, Quail Run Elementary School, San Ramon, CA

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

This fresh, funny launch of the 43 Old Cemetery Road series introduces an eccentric cast with pun-tastic names. I.B. Grumply, a cranky children's book author with writer's block, rents a dilapidated Victorian mansion (from realtor Anita Sale) in the town of Ghastly in hopes of writing an addition to his Ghost Tamers series (publisher: Paige Turner). He discovers that the owners have left their son Seymour behind while—in one of several ironic twists—they tour Europe debunking the existence of ghosts. Seymour does indeed “see more” than others: he has befriended Olive C. Spence, a feisty ghost who has vowed to haunt the house until she accomplishes what she couldn't in life—publish a book. As in the “Regarding the...” series, written by these sibling collaborators, the story unfolds through characters' correspondence (“The man is <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">impossible! I should've dropped THREE chandeliers on his head,” Olive writes Seymour about Grumply) as well as other documents, including illustrated pages from the local tabloid. Despite a slightly sappy denouement, the story is light enough for more tentative readers, with many humorous details to reward those who look closer. Ages 8–12. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Apr.)

Kirkus Reviews

Plenty of fun lurks in this ghost-story comedy when a dried-up, unsociable writer, I.B. Grumply, rents an old house already occupied by Seymour Hope, an abandoned boy, and his best friend, Olive, an active and bossy lady ghost. All told through letters, newspaper articles and other documents, the story also stars M. Sarah Klise's whimsical line drawings, which add substance to the plot. Readers learn that Mr. Grumply's writer's block has continued until he's penniless; he'll have to open up and make friends with his new roommates if he wants to produce that next bestseller. Kate Klise fleshes out the plot with back stories on the house, Seymour's catastrophic, absent parents and Olive's haunting of the house. Suspense intrudes when Seymour's parents reappear and decide to demolish it. Everywhere they look, readers will find comedy, even in the headers on the letters and character names. Of course it's all going to come out magnificently in the end, thereby setting up the next book in the planned series. A quirky, comedic romp. (Fiction. 8-14)

ALA Booklist (Wed Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)

This epistolary graphic mystery may take genre-bending into the realm of genre-pretzeling, but it still delivers an unlikely story with a great deal of likability. The famed children's author (who despises kids, naturally) Ignatius B. Grumply moves into an old Victorian mansion to finish his latest book. Turns out a young boy abandoned by his parents lives upstairs, and a ghost named Olive lives in the cupola, making for an uncomfortably full house. The entire interaction between the three (and a handful of supporting cast members) takes place in their written communiqués, a conceit that falls apart under close scrutiny but if taken at face value allows for a surprisingly jaunty read. Given that a bulk of the physical space is taken up by letterheads, this thin book can be read in a flash, and even though it is the first in the 43 Old Cemetery Road series, it stands on its own and features a touching conclusion. Maps of the house, portraits of the characters, and the boy's drawings add a nice layer to the mildly self-referential whole.