My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/b8FKMDJUbek

Enjoy! ( )

I picked this up because I love Shaun Tan's art, and realized I also love his story telling. This basically an long short story/novella for children, and will give any reader the shivers. If you like a spooky scare, this is one for you. ( )

An easy middle reader. I actually borrowed this to see the Shaun Tan illustrations; but the story is kinda creepy. Totally perfect for a kid that likes spooky stories. ( )

Part of a series of simple chapter books from Australia, recently released in the U.S. by Stone Arch Books, a publisher specializing in "Hi-Lo" books. These are titles intended for older students who are reading below their age and grade level - "high interest, low level."

The Haunted Playground follows young Gavin as he becomes involved in a series of eerie late-night games with a strange group of children. It has the necessary combination of simple language, and suspenseful, non "babyish" narrative, that will appeal to reluctant readers.

As an admirer of Shaun Tan's picture-book work, I was curious to see what he would do with a longer, more textual book. Although I found the plot-line itself rather pedestrian, I believe that it will function quite well as a tool to improve literacy. But the primary charm of the book, for me, was Tan's series of delicate and intricate etchings, which convey a real sense of menace to the reader.

Interest Level: Grades 5-9, Ages 10-14
Grade Level: 2-3 ( )

A young boy in search of hidden treasures decides to take his metal detector to a new park far from where he lives in hopes of finding a greater bounty there, but is sorely disappointed when he doesn't find anything at all. Then as night falls and the lights are switched on, he is shocked to discover several children appear seemingly out of nowhere. Are they ghosts? Are they just making fun of him? And why does he find it so physically difficult to get back home once he's gone well past his curfew? I borrowed this very small and short novel from the lending library, hoping to discover more artwork by Shaun Tan, the genius behind The Arrival, and was slightly disappointed to find only a handful of (necessarily) small black and white illustrations, albeit good ones. Still, a good story from the strange mind of the man also responsible for The Lost Thing and The Red Tree, among others. ( )