The Spirit House [Paperback]

William Sleator (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1993

After her little brother builds a traditional Thai spirit house in their backyard as a gift for the family's exchange student, things begin to go dangerously wrong for Julie. Reprint. K. C.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-10-- Afraid that the Thai exchange student who is arriving to stay with her family will be a "weird little Asian guy" whose presence will "wreck" her sophomore year, Julie is relieved to discover that Bia is, instead, handsome and worldly, although not as conversant in English as her family had expected. This is only one of a suspiciously large number of surprises that the young man springs on them--surprises that turn sinister when Julie's younger brother Dominic builds a small, shrinelike structure known as a spirit house to make Bia feel at home. Not only do Thais believe in spirits, it develops, but they routinely leave gifts in exchange for favors in these little houses. What happens if you make a deal with a spirit and neglect to leave something? Inevitably Julie finds out, and those who think it's something good have never read a novel by the wickedly imaginative Sleator before. The premise is clever and the characterization of Bia is convincing. However, the thematic confrontation of Western logic and Eastern superstition seems heavy-handed, while the book as a whole is sketchy and underdeveloped, more like a detailed outline than a fully realized novel. The climax is a shocker, though, and strongly suggests that a sequel is in the works--this one to be set in Thailand, perhaps? --Michael Cart, Beverly Hills Public Library
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Julie, 15, frankly expresses her dread over her family's decision to sponsor a ``weird little Asian guy'' (from Thailand) as a foreign exchange student, but when stylish Bia arrives to spend a year, he charms them all. Even Julie is awed by him, but she soon grows suspicious--he doesn't look like the photograph they received before he came, nor do his current interests match those he described in a letter. When Julie's little brother builds a Thai spirit house (a traditional household shrine) as a gift for Bia, life is oddly changed by its inhabitant. The female spirit has both vengeful and generous aspects; revealed, their effects on Bia are ultimately dire. Playfully, Sleator uses misconceptions about race and feminism to create suspense; Julie and her well-educated parents are all guilty of various kinds of stereotyping (she becomes enlightened by book's end, while they remain--well, parents). Best, however, is the logical explanation of seemingly supernatural events: the reader suspends belief only to have it systematically restored. That's a feat--and a treat. (Fiction. 10+) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (November 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140364838
• ISBN-13: 978-0140364835
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,509,671 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Evil Curse Follows A Thai Exchange Student Overseas, November 13, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Spirit House (Turtleback)

Fifteen-year-old Julie Kamen isn't too thrilled about the new Thai exchange student (Thamrongsak Tan-ngarmtrong) who's coming to live with them for the school year. For starters, he sounds like a total nerd from his letter--he loves math and foreign languages and doesn't waste his time on entertainment since he's always studying. Plus, he's a little odd-looking with his bald, misshapen head and big ears.

Yet when the family picks him up from the airport, he doesn't look anything like his picture; he's much more attractive. He also isn't interested in any of the subjects he mentioned before in his letter. In fact, he's terrible in school, loves to smoke and watch TV, and can barely speak English well. He's also extremely superstitious.

When Dominic, Julie's 11-year-old brother, builds a spirit house for Bia (the exchange student's nickname), a lot of weird things start to happen. And they all lead back to Bia. What horrible secret is he hiding, and why has Julie's luck turned bad ever since he's arrived?

"The Spirit House" is a pretty good book for teens. It's very short (134 pages), which will probably appeal to more lax readers. As for the supernatural element in the book, it wasn't very suspenseful. The story is more about superstitions than evidence of any evil spirit. The cryptic ending is also ok, but not very satisfying. However, if you're 12+ years-old and like supernatural mysteries, you'll probably really like this one.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book written by one of the best authors., May 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Spirit House (Paperback)

Julie doesn't want Thamrongsak to come to America, but when he does she kind of likes him. Everything changes when Dominic builds a spirit house, Bia starts acting strange and Julie is beginning to think maybe Bia isn't who he says he is. This is a great book, at the beginning it might not be to interesting, but don't put the book down!

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Spirit House, December 10, 2000

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Spirit House (Library Binding)

I'm 10 years old and I think that The Spirit House was the best book that I've ever read. This book is about a girl that lives with her family. In this book the girl's family is leting a boy named Bia, a forign exchange student from Thailand live with them when the girl begins to notice that Bia has been acting very strange ever scince her brother biult Bia a spirit house as a gift to make him feel at home. The girl begins to think that maybe Bia isn't the real boy that's saposed th be there. This book is brutal at times but that's what makes this book so inteteresting. I would recomend this book for a kid who likes reading exciting books such as the Harry Potter books. Thankyou for reading my review. Enjoy!