Paris Pan Takes the Dare [Hardcover]

Cynthea Liu (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

So what if it's a rite of passage for every seventhgrade girl in town to spend a night in the woods? Paris Pan only just moved here, the woods are supercreepy, and she has enough weirdness to deal with in her own family. Finding out a girl died mysteriously years ago while on the Dare - right near Paris's new house, no less - is bad enough, but the unmistakably ghostlike noises coming out of the broken-down shed at the edge of the Pan's property? Definite deal breaker.

All Paris wants is to make friends, try to fit in, and not have to deal with a dead girl. But everyone has to take the Dare, and the new girl's turn is up. . . .

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5–7—Moving to a new city every time her father finishes building and selling a house makes it hard for 12-year-old Paris Pan to make friends, so when two girls immediately seek her out on her first day at school and invite her to a party, she is thrilled. The catch, as Paris learns, is that the party is for Mayo's 13th birthday. It turns out that 20 years earlier, a girl was dared to spend the night in the woods alone and disappeared. Her body was found weeks later, and the cause of death was never definitively proven. Since then, all girls turning 13 take the Dare as a kind of rite of passage, and Mayo expects Paris to sleep in the woods with her and her friend. To make matters worse, Paris discovers that Beth disappeared where the Pans now live, and when she begins hearing noises at night, she wonders if the dead girl is haunting her. Paris's character is convincing—particularly in scenes in which she struggles internally while Mayo cruelly teases the class "freak," Robin. The ghost story/urban legend that drives the plot is well presented. Less well developed are the relationships in the Chinese-American Pan family, and Paris's parents speak in broken English that doesn't seem natural. Overall, though, the book is well paced and Paris's desire for friendship will ring true with middle school readers.—Amanda Raklovits, Champaign Public Library, IL
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Review

"...will ring true with middle school readers." --School Library Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (June 11, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399250433
• ISBN-13: 978-0399250439
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,881,222 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Cynthea Liu left a career as a technology consultant to become a full-fledged children's writer, proving that anyone, no matter how inexperienced, can write for children if one has the drive and the patience to learn. She obtained a literary agent within her first year as a writer and sold two novels soon after at auction to the Penguin Group. Her third book sold to Penguin on proposal. Her next book WOOBY AND PEEP is forthcoming from Sterling.

Cynthea currently lives in Chicago.

Photo Credit: Sonya Sones

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it!, September 3, 2009

By 

L.J. Boldyrev "www.ljboldyrev.com" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paris Pan Takes the Dare (Hardcover)

This book really surprised me! I loved it! It's cute, funny, a little scary at times and an altogether entertaining coming-of-age story. The mystery keeps you guessing all the way up to the end, but it's not so complicated that young readers wouldn't be able to follow the clues. The book its self is beautiful. I love the cover design and the colors. It's a perfect scary-starter book for young readers, but its sure to be enjoyed by adults (such as myself) as well.

[...]

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Take This Dare!, June 11, 2009

By 

Saundra Mitchell (Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Paris Pan Takes the Dare (Hardcover)

Paris Pan (along with sister Verona, and brother Athens,) have been shuttled from house to house and town to town for so long, that ending up in a tiny school without only 97 people, several freaks, and a couple of mean girls as possible friends, Paris is just glad to be on the friend side, not the freak side. But when she gets embroiled in a Dare- to spend the night in the woods where Beth Conlon went missing 20 years before- Paris struggles to figure out how to get out of it, which friends are...more Paris Pan (along with sister Verona, and brother Athens,) have been shuttled from house to house and town to town for so long, that ending up in a tiny school without only 97 people, several freaks, and a couple of mean girls as possible friends, Paris is just glad to be on the friend side, not the freak side. But when she gets embroiled in a Dare- to spend the night in the woods where Beth Conlon went missing 20 years before- Paris struggles to figure out how to get out of it, which friends are worth it, and what it means to really belong. Surprisingly creepy in parts, and freshly genuine throughout all, Paris Pan Takes the Dare is the perfect starter scary story for the 10 and up set, and a charming addition to any Coming Of Age collection

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, September 19, 2009

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paris Pan Takes the Dare (Hardcover)

Gold Star Award Winner!

Twelve-year-old Paris Pan has just moved to a new town. With a crazy home life, friends who make better enemies, and the boy Paris has a crush on being considered a dork, this move isn't going well.

When Paris learns a girl mysteriously died near her new house while taking the Dare (a seventh grade rite of passage), she's completely freaked out. And now strange noises are coming from the shed. Could the missing girl be trying to make contact?

Paris and her friends dig into the past in search of answers. What they find may not help, because Paris becomes a reluctant participant in the Dare. This is the night that will forever change her life, uncover the truth of the missing girl, and reveal who her true friends are.

PARIS PAN TAKES THE DARE draws you in and won't let you go until the end. I couldn't get enough of this story! Liu does such a great job of creating believable characters and realistic scenes that I had no trouble completely immersing myself in Paris's world. I have to admit, some of it even freaked me out a little bit.

Don't let this one pass you by. I DARE you to read it.

Reviewed by: Joan Stradling