Cemetery Street

Redo due to corrections

Summary

This week I read a mystery called Cemetery Street by Brenda Seabrooke. This story is about a teen named Courtney (Coco). She has just moved to Limbo Keys, Florida with her mom and little brother. As she gets settled and has to deal with being the new kid in school, weird things start happening. First, her brother’s dog is found dead in the cemetery, and not by accident. Next, an unidentifiable man keeps showing up at the cemetery. On Halloween night Coco’s brother, Bucky goes missing and she and Josh, a new friend, go looking for him. Eventually Coco, Josh and Bucky are captured and find themselves tied up and placed in a circle where an unknown man is performing a ritual trying to summon Satan. The trio ends up escaping and manages to alert the police. A couple of days later the guys are caught. I found this to be pretty scary reading and high drama.

Impressions

I enjoyed the story very much. It was very well written and Coco and Josh saved each other by working together. There was a puzzle to be solved and the story was suspenseful especially on Halloween night. Bucky seemed to be a very sweet child. Coco’s mother was trying to be a good mother, but I think she should try harder to get a job instead of move around from town to town. I really liked the way the author made the characters true to life it made it more real. I would recommend this book to any students in middle school.

Reviews from Amazon.com from customer Kim Baccellia

Courtney is used to moving around a lot. But when her mother finds a place next to cemetery, that's way too much. The kids at her new high school tease her about this. But not all is bad. Josh, a cute boy at school seems to be interested in her! Just when things start looking up, weird things start happening around the cemetery. Courtney and Josh set out to find out what's happening.

I enjoyed this MG tale that shows a heroine who's not willing to just sit back and fade into the background. Courtney's experiences as the new kid on the block ring true. I liked her relationship with her kid brother too.

This fast paced tale is sure to appeal to those who enjoy paranormal stories without the edginess of some recent tales.

Review from Amazon.com

From School Library Journal

Grade 6–9—High school sophomore Courtney has just moved to Limbo Key, FL, with her flaky mother, who goes through husbands at breakneck speed, and her little brother, Bucky. She has to deal with a lot as she struggles to fit in at school: the only house they can afford is next to the cemetery, Mom doesn't seem concerned about getting a job although they are running out of money, and Courtney often plays the role of mother to Bucky. Set against this backdrop is the bizarre story of Satanists in the area. Dr. White, a sort of doomsday peddler, has been speaking at the school and the public library about his books on devil worship and warning the community to beware. Suddenly, strange things are happening in the cemetery, where Bucky's puppy is found with its throat slit. Courtney, with help from a new friend who gets her involved in the school newspaper, tries to solve the mystery, which culminates in the teens being locked in tombs on Halloween night. Courtney is a likable character, and it is her story that holds readers' attention. The Satanist plot is not really focused on until the last third of the book and seems forced and preachy. Though it has many elements of a compelling read, this novel unfortunately falls short.—Jake Pettit, Thompson Valley High School Library, Loveland, CO
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Lesson

For an activity I would do a read aloud with this book using one chapter a day. I feel this is a good book to use in order to bring all the students into the story. This book presents new ideas for a different genre if the student has not read mystery books.