Bone Hollow, written by Kim Ventrella, reviewed by Todd Erickson

Summary: In an attempt to save Miss Cleo's pet chicken during a thunderstorm, Gabe falls from the rooftop of the only home he's ever really known. Gabe awakens to a tearful scene in Miss Cleo's bedroom, but no one seems to notice. Later, he escapes the mortuary table to reunite with his faithful canine Ollie, but to his shock - his guardian, friends and neighbors are not too happy to see him appear at his own candlelit vigil. Gabe doesn't quite realize that he's in fact dead, until it's spelled out to him by an 100 year old ghost girl Wynne. She invites him to stay with her in Bone Hollow. Wynne has a secret and a job that takes her away for chunks of time. In the end, Wynne has more in store for Gabe than he can even imagine.

Straight Talk for Librarians: Believe it or not, Bone Hollow starts out as a hilarious tale of one boy's haphazard and untimely death as he falls from the roof while attempting to rescue his guardian's chicken during a thunderstorm. Hijynx and mayhem ensues when Gabe attempts to convince his loved ones that he's really alive. To his horror, they chase him out of town with baseball bats. Believe it or not, this is all hysterical and side-splittingly funny, until Gabe meets Wynne and moves into Bone Hollow. Then the story becomes dead serious and less of an otherworldly joke. Honestly, the first half of the book is much more entertaining in tone and plot. The second half drags, as Gabe becomes resigned to his eternal fate.