Nothing but Ghosts (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up–When her mother dies of cancer, 16-year-old Katie finds it painful to continue the patterns of her old life, so she makes the unexpected choice of taking a summer job in the gardens of the nearby estate belonging to reclusive Miss Martine. There she works under the caretaker with the other part-timers and stumbles upon a two-pronged mystery: Why are they digging so deeply near the river, and how does that relate to whatever sent the debutante Miss Martine out of society more than 50 years earlier? Katie's father, a brilliant art-restoration expert, contributes to the search for answers as he cleans an elaborate painting that he believes Miss Martine's father, a millionaire industrialist, created near the time of her seclusion. Research into some donated boxes of local lore at the library and assistance from the librarian and an intriguing boy who also works at the estate aid in her investigation. Meanwhile, Katie grieves: memories of a family spur-of-the-moment trip to Barcelona the summer before remind her of how her mother made an event out of everything and made her feel loved. Somehow it's easier for the teen to deal with Miss Martine's ghosts than with the aching absence of her mother. Nice writing and characterization can't quite compensate for a lack of suspense, a romance that never really gets off the ground, and a story that doesn't draw one in.–Suzanne Gordon, Peachtree Ridge High School, Suwanee, GA
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From Booklist

Grief and all its anguish is at the heart of this story. Reeling from her mother’s death, Katie, 16, takes a summer job on a nearby wealthy estate as part of a work crew constructing a gazebo. As she bonds with her fellow teen worker, Danny, she stumbles across secrets about the beautiful, rich recluse who lives in the big house. Why has wacky Miss Martine not been seen for over 50 years? Is the hole that they’re digging really for the gazebo? With the help of the glamorous town librarian (yes, glamorous), Katie and Danny research local lore in newspaper files and microfilm. The connections between solving the mystery and Katie’s bereavement struggle are sometimes overstated. Her first-person present-tense narrative is clear and lyrical, though,especially in her portrayal of her genius dad, an artist who asks, “How do you paint regret?” and in her discovery that “beauty and sadness can both live in one place.” Grades 8-11. --Hazel Rochman

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen (June 23, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006166796X
• ISBN-13: 978-0061667961
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #386,713 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An uplifting story about grief, July 9, 2009

By	lenore531 (Wichita, KS United States) - See all my reviews

After the death of her mother, Katie takes a summer gardening job at the estate of town recluse Miss Martine who hasn't been seen outside since she was 16. Katie herself is burdened with grief, but she has to wonder what kind of tragedy would make you voluntarily disappear from life. With the help of two brothers and a glamorous librarian, Katie begins to decode the mystery and gain the strength to go on.

I admit, ever since the death of my own mother when I was 19, I tend to shy away from books where the mother is recently deceased or dying. I'm just always afraid they'll be too depressing, too sad to handle. But Beth has done a beautiful thing here - she takes us to the truth of what it's like to deal with loss (the too-big house that feels empty, the withdrawing from friends, the keeping busy to dull the pain) and then lets her characters (and her readers) find comfort and a renewed sense of purpose.

The story elements, the well-drawn characters (Katie's father, chic Ms. McDermott, and estate caretaker Old Olson were favorites), and spare, lyrical writing all contribute to making this a genuinely affecting reading experience. In fact, as far as books about grief go, I'd rate it up there with Kate DiCamillo's THE TIGER RISING.

5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling novel, November 10, 2009

By	RiverWriter - See all my reviews

I don't read much YA fiction anymore, but I have read all of Beth Kephart's work. She writes beautifully. That is always a plus. But the success of this novel (for me) is linked to Kephart's extraordinary devotion to character. Katie and her father are wonderfully developed--grief-ridden, quirky, and loving. Furthermore, Miss Martine's estate becomes a vivid and mysterious character itself. I truly admire the pain and the joy expressed between the covers of this excellent novel. I keep buying it for friends, young and old alike.

5.0 out of 5 stars Haunting in the way it stays with you, October 30, 2009

By	WordLily - See all my reviews

Katie is trying to come to grips with her mother's death, which left her and her father alone in a too-big house. In this summer before Katie's senior year in high school, Katie struggles to understand how a woman so alive as her mother was can just disappear. Her summer job is as a gardener at a big estate down the road. The estate's high society owner hasn't been seen for decades, closeting herself away in the huge house when she was a teen herself. She looks for clues in the dirt, and in the library.

The writing is beautifully lyrical -- transcendently so. Simple, smart, quiet, but deep. The story feels so real, so down-to-earth. A quick read, but one I wanted to take my time with, to savor it.

I have no complaints about this book, no quibbles. I want to read all of Kephart's fiction.

After I read this book, while it was sitting around waiting for me to write my review, my parents visited, and my dad picked it up and started reading it, getting at least 60 pages into it in the short time before we headed out. He was really enjoying it. Hopefully I'll get my book back soon.

This is an excellent book. Haunting in the way it stays with you. One of my favorites of the year, certainly.

This review was originally posted on my blog.