Customer Reviews

The Mystery of Chimney Rock (Choose Your Own Adventure #5)

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

 

 

A childhood favorite, this entry in the famous series has not been re-released yet. One of the more memorable, hopefully it will see the light of day again for the kiddies. (Not sure what criteria they use for the reprinting of the older titles).

Either way, glad to see that computers and video games have not totally killed the very simple pleasure these books held---sitting down, alone, with a book in your hand as a learning tool and as a spark for a young imagination. While not as challenging in a literary sense as other material, it provided something else in the personalization of the story through choices made in its reading.

This was one of the better early entries in this series. Essentially the exploration of a haunted house, it had more of the wonderful illustrations by Paul Granger, who did most of the early titles. For a young child, this was spooky---a mysterious house, a surly, ugly groundskeeper, a creepy old woman in a rocking chair, an evil black cat, and other elements combined to make this timeless. Always loved the mysterious old lady you randomly came across in the haunted mansion...

The printed page and the well-placed illustration have been more than enough to fuel an imagination for years and years; glad to see it hasn't completely died yet.

Fans of the "Choose Your Own Adventure" series will want to pick this one up if they ever see it in libraries or used bookstores. This is the series in its early prime, with originator Edward Packard at the helm. He creates a plausible haunted house with a somewhat original cat-and-mouse theme, some genuine terror for kids, and a fine atmosphere.

When I was in my early teens, both a friend and I had a very mysterious experience reading this book... it's like we both lost time reading it: I had read it, and told him how great it was, and how creepy it was, and when he borrowed it, he mentioned "losing time" where he just started reading then all of a sudden it was hours later... I recommend this innocent bit of creepy fun for any mature pre-teen (it certainly isn't all happy-ever-after). The illustrations contribute to the overall creepiness of the 'experience' of reading this book.

If the reader likes Harry Potter, the plots may be a little too simplistic, but it's fun, none the less.

On your vacation in CT you notice a huge, empty stone house at the top of the hill. Some of the windows are boarded up. Some are covered with vines. The old house, known at "Chimney Rock," is so dark and gloomy that most people won't go near it.

But you are the curious type. Should you see for yourself what's inside? Your cousin urges you to go ahead.

What will you do....you choose.

As a sixth grade teacher, I rarely see my students as fired up to read a novel as they are about the Choose Your Own Adventure series, especially The Mystery of Chimney Rock. They beg me to read to them and often fight over what few copies I have. Kids love to feel like they are in charge of something important and exciting, especially at the middle school age. The Mystery of Chimney Rock is consistent and doesn't contradict itself no matter how your story comes out. The circumstances the reader chooses dictate the action, not the author's manipulating the characters to influence the story. Suspenseful and nailbiting! Students feel genuinely involved and downright nervous as to whether they will live or die in the book.

When Packard wrote this book he must've been obsessed with mice. The book is full of 'em and sometimes you're one of them. During the course of this book you find yourself in an old haunted house that's inhabited by a witch. More of a "escape the curse" type of book, there are no ghosts in the story. The only evil is the witch and her cat. It's a good book if you like to read about sneaking around a house where there's a good chance that you'll either be dead or marked for life. But if it's mystery you want, look somewhere else.

I loved this book because you can choose your own path. You can't say to much about theese books because you might not have token the same path others have. But, you can tell someone it is interesting and full of suspense. You never know when the end will come for you. If you read it over and over while chosing different paths every time you won;t know what will happen next except in the beginning on the first page.

Will you figure out the mystery of chimney rock? Read this book and choose wisley to find out! :)

I must have reread this book a million times as a child. It was my favorite of the Choose your own adventures. It stayed on my shelf long after I got rid of the rest of them.

It had everything for a "scary" kids story. Remember at this time there was no Mr. Stine with his Goosebumps line of stories. We recently received got some of these at our local library. I was sad to see that this one was not among them.

Both my wife and I love Choose Your Own Adventures and have most of the old ones except for a few. This is her favorite, but she couldn't find it. Amazon came through and in a few days the book was in her hands. We both read it together, taking turns "choosing the adventure."

My 9 year old son recently started reading and enjoying the 'Choose your Own Adv' series and I had to get him a couple of my old favorites by Edward Packard, including this one and 'Cave of Time'