The Watcher in the Woods (Paperback)

by Florence Engel Randall (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
When their family moves into a house at the edge of a forest, two sisters sense an invisible presence as strange occurrences take place. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 202 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks (July 1980)
• ISBN-10: 0590313347
• ISBN-13: 978-0590313346
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #925,887 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A GOTHIC HOUSE STORY WITH A SCIENCE FICTION TWIST!!!, July 16, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews

I still feel that it is a real shame that Disney made such a poor film from this novel. As far a young adult fiction goes, this story is truly gripping. By taking the "old dark house" genre, and incorporating elements of the science fiction story into it, Randall effectively creates a narrative that is gripping and unique. The conclusion of the novel is ambiguous, but compelling nonetheless. Randall makes effective use of characters and, most especially, atmosphere. I also liked the use of paralleling the heroine's experience with the girl who used to live in the house and the watcher. I first read this story when I was nine or ten, and I found it captivating. I have since reread it several times, and found it equally interesting each time. In many ways, the novel makes use of several storylines and ideas which are very common today, but not at the time that it was written, such as communicating with psychic phenomena through the television ("Polt! ! ergeist"), or alien visitation ("The X-Files"). I regret that Disney felt compelled to change the plot dramatically, and to fill the story with uninteresting cliches and unbearable acting. It's a shame that this interesting novel that seems to have its finger on currently popular sub-genres, is out-of-print. (Check out John Bellairs' "The House With a Clock in Its Walls" for another interesting juvenile fiction take on the gothic house story.)

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Well written for young readers., August 24, 2007

By	R. Gorey "Behemoth" (New York) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This intriguing novel of suspense and science fiction is perhaps known best for being the basis for the Disney film made in 1981. It's a well crafted and psychologically dense story, but not without its flaws. Though the writing is elegant, and the character of Jan (a troubled teen in a mysterious house) is strong, the other elements don't quite come together. Jan's alienation and despair are unfortunately shunted aside early on when her supportive, understanding family believe her tales of an unseen presence watching her and communicating through her younger sister. What might have been a gripping and frightening story becomes instead a journey of scientific discovery undergone by a family whose shattered relationships are healed quickly and maybe too easily. The novel's ending (changed for the film, and much criticized for that reason) is either frustratingly obtuse or tantalizingly vague, depending on the reader's disposition. Randall is a fine writer: her observations about youth and the terrifyingly swift transformations to old age are astute. They give the book strength and momentum. But some inconsistent plotting and a few missed opportunities get in the way of what might have been a classic, under other circumstances.