Tragic Theaters

January 1, 2014
Grades 4-7 These entries in the Scary Places series will pique many children's curiosity with the strange and unknown. Each title uses double-page spreads to introduce 11 undeniably scary sites around the world. Tragic Theaters depicts several ways, whether by distraught lovers or victims of untimely accidents, in which theaters become haunted or dubbed as unlucky. Readers may recognize Ford's Theatre, the site of Lincoln's assassination, or the Paris Opera, which inspired The Phantom of the Opera. Both volumes comprise a wealth of trivia, from Kansas City's Electric Park, which influenced a young Walt Disney, to occasional appearances by Harry Houdini and Judy Garland at New York's Palace Theatre. Modern and archival photos, as well as eerie superimposed images, add to the books' effect. Delightfully spooky.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2014
After brief introductions, busy double-page spreads focus on specific sites, often with anecdotal reports of ghostly encounters. Though the hectic design--featuring photographs, illustrations, and text boxes set on blurry, eerie backgrounds--strains for spooky effect, the texts themselves focus (superficially) on facts while speculating on alleged paranormal activity. A world map showing the locations is appended. Reading list. Glos., ind.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)