A book both educational and entertaining! Jared Millhouse and his dad plan to spend an uneventful summer on his grandfather s farm in Lone Jack, Missouri. Then Jared runs into the ghost of a Civil War innkeeper and wonders if he s lost his mind. With the help of his grandfather--and some local characters--Jared and the Crossroads Gang uncover the truth about the Civil War battle that trapped so many bloodthirsty ghosts in Lone Jack. They even recruit a pair of eccentric ghost hunters to help. When it comes to facing down the local bully, dodging the power-crazy sheriff, or escaping convicts, Jared can count on his friends. Together, they face haunted baseball diamonds, embattled cornfields and abandoned mines. But when Confederate and Union ghouls line up on the battlefield, the entire town relives the gruesome Battle of Lone Jack, as it was fought in 1862. Then only Jared can save the town from its ghosts.
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This very well written story gives young readers a sense of the anguish that the men who fought at Lone Jack, and so many other battles across the country, felt during this very dark period in our nation's history. But more importantly, it gives young readers a glimpse into their heritage and will hopefully instill in them the need to preserve our past. -- --Alinda M. Miller, President, Lone Jack Historical Society; Site Administrator, Lone Jack Civil War Battlefield, Soldier s Cemetery and Museum
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A VERY NICELY DONE ACTION MYSTRY GHOST STORY FOR THE YOUNG AND NOT SO YOUNG,
This review is from: The Ghosts of Lone Jack (Paperback)
It is quite pleasing to read a book aimed at youth readership which has a bit of everything in it and is able to hook the reader on the first page. This remarkable story opens as Jared Millhouse, a young lad who spends the summers with his widowed father and grandfather on the family farm in Lone Jack, Missouri, is playing in a very important baseball game. Unfortunately Jared is by far the worse player on the team and as he misses a game winning fly ball hit to his right field position, he encounters a ghostly figure of a woman as he searches for the lost ball he misses.
The story picks up steam here and is pretty well non-stop action until the final page. This is a rather unique read in that the author has been able to incorporate several genres within the covers of one book. We of course have a very well written supernatural ghost story that is bound to raise the hair on the back of any kid's neck. We have a very good story; quite accurate actually, of a little known Civil War Battle that teaches while entertaining. We have a story of youthful friendship very reminiscent in the coming of age story based on the Stephen King novella, "The Body," and we have a very good and accurate profile of small town life in the Midwest. Tightly written prose, with a touch of humor here and there, makes reading this one a pure delight. Drifting from the supernatural to the real world and back, the author has taken a rather difficult premise and made it sound and read quite natural. His highly accurate description of the town, surrounding country and people who inhabit it is quite remarkable. Living near this area and having visited the town and battlefield of Lone Jack many, many times over the years, I can attest to the fact that the author has his facts in a very straight line. As a matter of fact, I have a round of grapeshot from that battle setting on my desk as I write this review. Lance Lee Noel also seems to know children of the age he writes; their emotions, unpredictability, attitudes towards adults and peers and general outlook on life. He, the author is able to see the eyes through the eyes of a ten year old boy, using the same logic and coming to the same conclusions. This is a rare gift indeed for an adult. Not all that many writers can pull this off but Noel has done it in flying colors. I was particular delighted with the author's description of and account of historical fact. Now reader take note...this particular battle was one of the most intense and viciously savage battles occurring on the Western Front of the war. It was an extremely personal battle as the soldiers on both sides were for the most part all "local boys" and as one historian has put it...."both sides were the home team." More than 280 men died in this battle it is said, although I suspect this figure is much higher in reality. I make this statement in that the author is quite vivid in his description of parts of the battle as he is quite vivid in his description of some of the supernatural, ghostly, ghoulish characters in this work. This is good, as this is what most kids want in their reading; I only mention it to warn the parent. There has been some mention that the language some of the children use may not be appropriate, nor their disrespect for adult authority. I can assure you that if you are around this group age very long, you will find that the author has actually been quite easy on the kids. Don't fooled...kids do talk this way and kids do act out this way quite frequently. Don't take me wrong, there is no hard profanity here, only the poo poo jokes and giggling over farts and the like. The young reader will most certainly be able to identify with each and every character in this work. When not dealing with the ghosts and problems of the past, we have a group of kids dealing with the ordinary problems of kids now days; bullies, dysfunctional parents and households, abusive authority figures and the simple insecurities of youth on the edge of adulthood. Life is life, even in a good fantasy story. I do highly recommend this one and might add that I know of quite a number of older children; indeed, adults, that will take delight in reading this one. Don Blankenship The Ozarks
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstand Read!,
This review is from: The Ghosts of Lone Jack (Paperback)
Jared Millhouse has lost his mom, his dad is deep in depression over his life as the two of them settle in for the summer at his grandfather's farm in Lone Jack, Missouri. Due to a course of events Jared becomes friends with several of the local children and becomes a member of the Crossroads Gang. Unfortunately all of there lives are challenged by the local bully who is intent in making their summer miserable.
Along with that, strange things are happening in Lone Jack, ghosts of soldiers from the Civil War show up fighting each other. Indians with two faces appear out of nowhere and Jared, his friends, and family, along with escaped convicts, find themselves in the midst of a terrifying time warp where the spirits of those passed are trapped and the entire town is in danger of death. Will they escape and will the ghosts of the past finally be put to rest? I'll never tell. Inside the pages of this outstanding read you will find a story that grabs you right from the start. The characters are very well defined, and we have Jared who pulls at your heartstrings from the start. A ten year old boy, who is well behaved and trying his best to face life after the death of his mom, he is one you will admire. A grandpa who is full of wisdom and love and a father who is deeply hurting. Add with that Sirus, the groundkeeper of the cemetery and a local who shares at first the secrets of the ghosts with young Jared and his friends and gives you insight into the history of these ghosts and what is taking place. You are in for the ride of your life. Action packed this novel moves you from this realm into the parallel one of trapped souls with the whirl of the pen. One minute you are in a corn field, at a race, walking along a dirt road, and the next you are battling for your very life with ghostly attackers as you become one with the character in the read. Creepy! but oh so good. What is it that these ghosts want and how will Jared and his friends end this nightmare? This book is not just for the YA group. I feel that adults will truly enjoy this story and both will learn quite a bit just from reading it. It's action packed adventure at it's peak, with characters you will both fear, love and actually giggle at intertwined in a storyline that never gives you a dull moment. Very well written, excellent job by author, Lance Lee Noel. Recommended.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Ghosts of Lone Jack is a FANTASTIC Read,
By
This review is from: The Ghosts of Lone Jack (Paperback)
Title: The Ghosts of Lone Jack
Author: Lance Lee Noel ISBN: 978-0-9800369-0-9 Did you ever see Stand By Me? You know, that wonderful book about the group of boys discovering the dead body in their small, unknown town? Every part of that movie was fantastic (applause goes to Mr. King for writing it in the first place.) Well, I must say, this book reminded me so much of that movie that I absolutely fell in love with it by page five. Jared Millhouse is a ten-year-old boy who lives in the small town of Lone Jack, Missouri. Now, although the town is small, the historical significance of the place makes it a strange and wondrous world. A very long time ago, one of the bloodiest battles in the Civil War happened in this town. Here, the Blue and the Gray went crazy, killing the other side on sight as they each tried to gain ground in the War Between the States. Jared lives with his father and grandfather on an old, weather-beaten farm that is falling apart. Grandpa has emphysema and Jared's dad is simply wasting away in a liquor bottle. He can barely be a father to young Jared anymore because his heart and soul are dying since the loss of his wife to ovarian cancer. Because of these issues, Jared is mostly on his own. He tries with all his might to cheer up his father. He even took up baseball - which he absolutely can't stand...and that's where our story begins. Sure enough it's the final game to go to the playoffs and a ball is hit to Jared out in right field. Jared's mouth goes dry and tears flood his eyes as he watches the ball soar over his glove and land in the dense trees and grass behind him. He dives into the grass looking for the ball, but instead finds a woman with gnarled hair, black circles under her eyes, and fingers like a witch, who screeches at Jared and disappears. Suffice to say, the ball game is lost and Jared's heart feels like its going to explode out of his chest. He rides his bike home, but its so far a distance that he stops at the cemetary outside of town. Sirus, the groundskeeper of the cemetary, listens to Jared's strange tale about the woman "hovering" in the trees. The man's skin grows pale as he talks about having seen the souls himself - orbs that flicker in the air. He tells Jared that he believes the people who lost their lives in Lone Jack are still there and trying desperately to find a way out of the world and into "heaven." It's like they're stuck and have no idea how to move on...and up. Now everyone in town believes that Sirus is simply an old man losing his mind, but Sirus believes that when people grow older they can see things like ghosts and souls because they are moving closer to the grave themselves. (I loved and completely agreed with that part. We tend to "label" the older generation when they are way smarter than the rest of us.) On we go to Jared's house as he tries to tell what he's seen. Yet again, there is so much depression and lifelessness in his own home, that no one can understand the ridiculous fantasies of a young man. Many children - friends and non-friends of Jared - begin to enter the story, and this is what reminds me of Mr. King's imaginative tale. The kids in this book are called names like Shanks, Suds, and Porker. When Jared is asked by Suds to become part of their group - the Crossroads Gang - the other boys scream that Jared must go through an initiation to become one of them. Jared goes into a lonely, dark cave and ends up finding a gold star buried deep within the old mine. Sure enough, after that find, ghosts of every sort come after him screaming at Jared to give them "the key." I won't give away this story because I want all of you to read it. This is yet another YA that is also perfect for adults who want to venture into the past and enjoy a roller-coaster ride of fun. You will not remember enjoying anything quite so much; you will sit down and go into a world that offers historical battles, a haunted baseball diamond, and fields that are intensely quiet - that only the departed inhabit. The story is completely fascinating and a whole lot of fun. I've been to the battlefields at Gettysburg, and I was always amazed at how quiet they were. After all, they were a huge tourist destination and there were cars and busloads of visitors everywhere. Yet, when you walked those fields, it was like the ghosts of the soldiers were speaking to you, telling you what went on. The author of Lone Jack does a fantastic job with the writing of situations such as this. I was immediately transported back in time to a field that I had walked as a child, listening to the ghosts of the past. Congratulations Lance Lee Noel! I can't wait to read more. Until Next Time, Amy [...]
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