Customer Reviews

The Ghost Wore Gray

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love this book! My mother bought it for me years ago and I read it so many times I wore it out! Now, all grown up, I have re-purchased it to read over and over to my kids! An excellent story, well written, and impressive. Not only a great ghost story, scary enough to keep the older ones interested, but not to scary too frighten the little ones, but amazingly it gives you insight into how the underground railroad was run and the desperate measure and danger they met along the way. If you have some kids that are struggling in subjects like history, this is an excellent way to 'sneak' in some knowledge and get those wheels turning! You won't be disappointed with this book!

I would recommend this book THE GHOST WORE GRAY by:Bruce Coville, to any-body who loves books about adventure and the civil war and also alot about how they let slaves live in their homes . The story is about a girl named Nina aka:Nine,and her best friend Chris, Nina's father is a remodeler for old run down places like hotels and inns. Her father takes a job to remodel an old inn. When the three of them get there they discover that the inn that Nina's father is remodeling is haunted. The name of the inn is called the Quackadoddle Inn, when they find out that other living things are there. They conclude that there is a GHOST! The ghost is a man that was in the war and that is how the story is based on. His name is Captain Jonathan Gray. Then Chris and Nina learn about the civil war and why Captain Gray was staying at the Quackadoddle Inn. But then when they find out how and why Captain Gray died the story turns into a real adventure. The adventure seems so real that it feels like you are almost in the whole story as it goes on.I hope I have helped your opinion on reading and seeing what good of a book this is and how good the adventure can get. To tell you how good this book is, if I could give this book a 10 star rateing I would because that is how good I thought this book was. Thank you for taking your time and reading my very long book review.

Reflecting on it, I realize that it was this book that engendered the great interest that I now have in the War Between the States. Years ago, I read this book for the first time, and I still do despite the "reading level" on the back. Honestly, if you ask me, ignore it! Those three letters (or letter and a number) "RL5" mean nothing as far as having a great plot, and good characters.

In this book, Coville demonstrates a power to make you believe (while reading) that anything is possible, that perhaps--maybe--ghosts really can and do exist. He also, by well-written diary entries and some well-choreographed appearances, does an incredible job of letting you catch a glimpse of what Captain Gray is (was?) like without saying much of anything at all besides a well-timed Rebel Yell. (Those of you who have read this book know what I mean by this.)

Nina, Chris, and Captain Gray all seem to come alive in this book (I use the term "alive" loosely!). I have to say that it is the best of the three Nina Tanleven books. All three are good, but this one shines very clearly above the rest.

Bruce Coville has written dozens (perhaps even hundreds) of books for young people, usually in the fantasy/sci-fi genre, but often overlooked among his body of work is this little trilogy of ghost stories starring two spunky young female protagonists. Beginning with The Ghost in the Third Row and ending with The Ghost in the Big Brass Bed, each one is a rewarding ghost story with plenty of chills and surprises along the way.

Told in first-person narrative by Nina Tanleven, she explains in the opening chapter that she and her best friend Chris Gurley consider themselves ghost-experts considering their experiences in the previous book. Both are looking forward to accompanying Nina's architect father to a colonial inn that he's been commissioned to restore to its former glory. The Quackadoodle Inn has a rich heritage given its role in the Civil War - and even better, is rumored to be haunted by a Confederate soldier!

The girls arrive and not only do they find that the inn is filled with a range of intriguing (and suspicious) guests, but that the ghost does indeed exist. After seeing a portrait of Captain Jonathan Gray hanging on the stairwell, both girls are astonished when he decides to join them at a dinner party that night. They are the only two who can see him, and he's obviously trying to tell them something important. Nina and Chris begin to investigate the inn and its surroundings, uncovering a mystery that's over a hundred years old.

One thing of note is that despite the spooky nature of the books, the ghosts themselves are not portrayed as particularly malevolent. In this case especially, they are lost souls that need help with unfinished business before they're ready to move on to the next plain of existence. If there is any danger involved, then it always arises from the living.

It is quite surprising that Coville chose two girls to be his protagonists instead of the expected boy/girl combination, but these books are a great opportunity for young boys to read an exciting story starring a female duo. I've always been irritated by the idea that boy readers can only relate to boy protagonists, and in this case Nina and Chris are intelligent, brave and funny heroes that readers of either gender can enjoy. With a healthy dose of historical facts about Samson Carter and the Underground, as well as a story that involves hidden rooms, secret diaries, buried treasure and a range of suspects that pose a very real threat to the girls should they not watch their step.

All in all, this and the other two books in Coville's trilogy are winners. I first read them when I was ten years old, and on rediscovering them in my twenties I found they were just as good as I remember.

Sixth-grader Nina Tanleven and her friend Chris spend a summer in the Catskills, as Nina's architect dad restores a historic old inn. The two friends - who have experienced ghosts before - soon realize a young Confederate soldier's spirit hovers about the property.

While they are intrigued, simply wondering why a Confederate soldier would be so far up North and why his spirit is unable to rest, someone else - living and deadly - is following the girls, wanting to keep them from finding out the truth.

When she's not out hunting ghosts, 11-year-old Nina is just a regular girl. Abandoned by her mother at a young age, she and her dad are particularly close, and tomboyish Chris proves just the right companion for her adventures...

i liked it alot but they could lighten it up with some scary pictures in the book. I visualise all my book that i read. through the whole book i viualised the cover. so what im saying is to add a little more fun!!(pictures)

I reread this book of the 3 Nine and Chris Mistery more than the other 2. It made me want to go out and learn more about th Civil War/ War Between The States. I wish Mr. Coville would write more stories involving these two girls.

What a mystery! If you love suspense and mystery this is a book you want to read. Ghost stories are so interesting. You will go back in time and experience the time of the civil war. You should enjoy this book.