Class Book Review: A Good Night for Ghosts (Magic Tree House Book)

I'm taking a class this summer on choosing children's books for a media center. 

It's called: Reading, Listening, Viewing Guidance & Selection of Resources for Children

For this class I have to read many books from picture books to chapter books (tough sounding class I know!)

I'm going to review these books and label them as for this class and for each one I'll share how I might use it or share it in my FUTURE media specialist position :)

Early Readers

A Good Night for Ghosts by Mary Pope Osborne

Jack and Annie are on their second mission to find—and inspire—artists to bring happiness to millions. After traveling to New Orleans, Jack and Annie come head to head with some real ghosts, as well as discover the world of jazz when they meet a young Louis Armstrong!

Ghosts (Magic Tree House Fact Tracker #20)

When Jack and Annie got back from their adventure in Magic Tree House #42: A Good Night for Ghosts, they had lots of questions. What are some of the most famous ghost stories? Why do people believe in ghosts? Do most cultures have ghost stories? What are ghost hunters? Find out the answers to these questions and more as Jack and Annie track the facts. Filled with up-to-date information, photos, illustrations, and fun tidbits from Jack and Annie, the Magic Tree House Fact Trackers are the perfect way for kids to find out more about the topics they discovered in their favorite Magic Tree House adventures.

I have been reading Magic Tree House books with my kids for at least 10 years.  This is the first time I ever had to read one just for me though! I've always liked this series.  Some early chapter books can annoy me, but this one doesn't that much.  How's that for a resounding positive review?? :)  In this book Jack and Annie head to New Orleans and meet Louis Armstrong.  I love how it would expose children to some history and most likely history they are not aware of.  It would expose them to something beyond what they might know on a daily bases.  It was also cute with the ghost aspect.  And yes there really is a ghost in the story! It was done just right for kids - nothing scary that would keep them up at night.  As usual, Jack and Annie has to help fix something in history.  This is done with some conflict but solved easily in the end.  

Over-all a nice book and series for those beginner readers.

About the nonfiction companion book - I like that some of the Magic Tree House books have these because it gives young kids some of the information behind the story.  This one looks at several different topics including why New Orleans is considered a very haunted city.  I even learned a few things reading it!