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Zack Files #3
Zack Files a Ghost Named Wanda
My room is a mess. Now, usually this is not big news. But my clothes have started moving...when I'm not inside them. And the TV is floating across the room! Guess what! I'm sharing my room with a ghost named Wanda.
Unknown Binding
First published August 1, 1996
5 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Dan Greenburg
160 books74 followersDAN GREENBURG BIO
BOOKS:
Dan's 73 books have been published in 24 countries.
His adult best-sellers include EXES, LOVE KILLS, HOW TO BE A JEWISH MOTHER, HOW TO MAKE YOURSELF MISERABLE, and HOW TO AVOID LOVE AND MARRIAGE. How to be a Jewish Mother sold several million copies. It and How to Make Yourself Miserable were in print for 30 years and were on Publishers Weekly’s list of all-time bestsellers.
Amazon will publish Dan’s third psychological thriller, FEAR ITSELF, in January 2014. They’ll also republish his first two thrillers, EXES and LOVE KILLS.
He’s written four series of children's books: THE ZACK FILES, SECRETS OF DRIPPING FANG, WEIRD PLANET, and MAXIMUM BOY. The Zack Files sold more than 2 million copies, was translated into 20 languages, and generated an Emmy-winning 52-episode TV series that ran on Showtime and Fox Family.
ADVENTURES:
Dan has written extensively about his adventures:
Riding with NYPD homicide detectives for two years to research thrillers FEAR ITSELF, EXES, and LOVE KILLS.
Interviewing murderers alone in their maximum security prison cells for FEAR ITSELF.
Attending autopsies in the NYC morgue for EXES.
Learning how to discipline tigers and lions on a Texas tiger ranch.
Swimming with 80,000 lb. humpback whales in the deep ocean.
Flying upside down with a stunt pilot in an open-cockpit biplane.
Participating in dangerous voodoo rites in Haiti.
Riding with NYC firemen for four months and following them into burning buildings.
Searching for the Loch Ness Monster.
Assisting exorcists in a Connecticut house attacked by poltergeists.
Acting a major character role in a Western movie filmed in Spain.
Doing stand-up comedy at the New York Improv, and on TV talk shows.
Getting screamed at by Orson Welles on the set of Catch-22 in Mexico.
MAGAZINES:
Dan’s articles have appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, New York Magazine, The New York Times Book Review, The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, The Huffington Post, Time, Life, Newsweek, Ms., Playboy, and have been reprinted in 44 humor anthologies in the U.S. and England.
MOVIES AND TV:
Dan has had six of his feature films produced, two of which are on Variety’s list of top grossing films.
THEATER:
Along with Jules Feiffer, John Lennon and Samuel Beckett, Dan was a contributor to Oh! Calcutta!, which ran on Broadway for 21 years. He was also a contributor to Free to be You and Me, which ran off and on Broadway for years.
MISC.:
Dan has appeared on The Today Show, The Tonight Show, Larry King Live, and Late Night with David Letterman. He grew up in Chicago, got his BFA from the University of Illinois, and his MFA from UCLA. He lives in Westchester, NY and British Columbia with his author wife Judith Greenburg and many cats.
dan@dangreenburg.com
BOOKS:
Dan's 73 books have been published in 24 countries.
His adult best-sellers include EXES, LOVE KILLS, HOW TO BE A JEWISH MOTHER, HOW TO MAKE YOURSELF MISERABLE, and HOW TO AVOID LOVE AND MARRIAGE. How to be a Jewish Mother sold several million copies. It and How to Make Yourself Miserable were in print for 30 years and were on Publishers Weekly’s list of all-time bestsellers.
Amazon will publish Dan’s third psychological thriller, FEAR ITSELF, in January 2014. They’ll also republish his first two thrillers, EXES and LOVE KILLS.
He’s written four series of children's books: THE ZACK FILES, SECRETS OF DRIPPING FANG, WEIRD PLANET, and MAXIMUM BOY. The Zack Files sold more than 2 million copies, was translated into 20 languages, and generated an Emmy-winning 52-episode TV series that ran on Showtime and Fox Family.
ADVENTURES:
Dan has written extensively about his adventures:
Riding with NYPD homicide detectives for two years to research thrillers FEAR ITSELF, EXES, and LOVE KILLS.
Interviewing murderers alone in their maximum security prison cells for FEAR ITSELF.
Attending autopsies in the NYC morgue for EXES.
Learning how to discipline tigers and lions on a Texas tiger ranch.
Swimming with 80,000 lb. humpback whales in the deep ocean.
Flying upside down with a stunt pilot in an open-cockpit biplane.
Participating in dangerous voodoo rites in Haiti.
Riding with NYC firemen for four months and following them into burning buildings.
Searching for the Loch Ness Monster.
Assisting exorcists in a Connecticut house attacked by poltergeists.
Acting a major character role in a Western movie filmed in Spain.
Doing stand-up comedy at the New York Improv, and on TV talk shows.
Getting screamed at by Orson Welles on the set of Catch-22 in Mexico.
MAGAZINES:
Dan’s articles have appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, New York Magazine, The New York Times Book Review, The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, The Huffington Post, Time, Life, Newsweek, Ms., Playboy, and have been reprinted in 44 humor anthologies in the U.S. and England.
MOVIES AND TV:
Dan has had six of his feature films produced, two of which are on Variety’s list of top grossing films.
THEATER:
Along with Jules Feiffer, John Lennon and Samuel Beckett, Dan was a contributor to Oh! Calcutta!, which ran on Broadway for 21 years. He was also a contributor to Free to be You and Me, which ran off and on Broadway for years.
MISC.:
Dan has appeared on The Today Show, The Tonight Show, Larry King Live, and Late Night with David Letterman. He grew up in Chicago, got his BFA from the University of Illinois, and his MFA from UCLA. He lives in Westchester, NY and British Columbia with his author wife Judith Greenburg and many cats.
dan@dangreenburg.com
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
October 11, 2021
I really liked A Ghost Named Wanda because its about a ghost named Wanda who goes to peoples houses and ruins there houses and a kid try's to get rid of Wanda and it worked and the kids friend was having trouble with a ghost at his house and the two ghost became friends and haunted and haunted house.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2012
A ghost name Wanda is about a ghost that haunts Zacks apartment. How he discovered its been haunted is when he wakes up and realizes his room was destroyed more than normal. And to find out after his father disbelief of the ghost theory. Holy and behold there's a ghost name Wanda. I'm going to stop there from spoiling this great book. But I really enjoyed the ending and I enjoyed the storyline. Lol. Great story!!!
May 21, 2009
I was ok with this book, until chapter 4 when zack goes to the library and gets books out on "black magic" and then gets black candles to do a seance. Black magic is not a concept I want introduced to my child for a very long time. Needless to say, we didn't finish the book.
August 24, 2018
I need to read it let me read it
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2019
This book was entertaining enough! I think kids will like it!
September 28, 2020
I have read this book and thought it was good and a fun read.
August 3, 2020
Again not to draw to many comparisons to the fairly odd parents but this will fit right at home you have shows like this as a child,you should really enjoy this book,again i don't care what age you are READ this BOOK,it's good and to be enjoyed by all please read it,you wont regret it.
April 15, 2017
The Zack book was fun to read.It was good story .Things a floating in Zack room. Zack find out that he is sharing a room with ghost name Wanda.Wanda was a terrible at spelling.That what make this book more fun.
August 13, 2014
Zack is a regular kid, but his situations are anything but ordinary. This series with lots of light intersections into the paranormal, supernatural, and fantastical is good for an occasional, not-too-serious laugh. In this one, Zack is plagued by a child ghost named Wanda who keeps messing up his house and playing pranks. What does she want? Is there something Zack can do? Eventually he is able to find another ghost named Cecil (who's as neat as Wanda is messy), and Zack has got to help them settle their differences. (I don't think I'd want to see the messages anyone spelled out with M&Ms though. You can't say much but MMMMMM.)
The books are short, easy to read, and full of off-color jokes, which makes them a good read for reluctant kids but really I felt it was too gimmicky right from the start. Things happen for laughs, not really for much other reason, and though there's a time and a place, I prefer that even children's books show a little bit more sophistication, I guess.
The books are short, easy to read, and full of off-color jokes, which makes them a good read for reluctant kids but really I felt it was too gimmicky right from the start. Things happen for laughs, not really for much other reason, and though there's a time and a place, I prefer that even children's books show a little bit more sophistication, I guess.
October 7, 2014
A Ghost Named Wanda is Book #3 in The Zack Files series. It is the first book that I have read by Dan Greenburg. It will appeal to kids who like mysteries and humorous stories. I imagine that the series could become popular with a classroom of boys because the slightly off-color jokes and the paranormal would seem a bit "forbidden".
I might recommend this book to developing readers because it is short (less than 60 pages) and they will find it entertaining. The next read will be easy . . . just grab another book in the series.
#1 - Great-Grandpa's in The Litter Box
#2 - Through the Medicine Cabinet
#4 - Zap! I'm a Mind Reader
#5 - Dr. Jekyll, Orthodontist
#6 - I'm Out of My Body . . . Please Leave a Message
#7 - Never Trust a Cat Who Wears Earrings
I might recommend this book to developing readers because it is short (less than 60 pages) and they will find it entertaining. The next read will be easy . . . just grab another book in the series.
#1 - Great-Grandpa's in The Litter Box
#2 - Through the Medicine Cabinet
#4 - Zap! I'm a Mind Reader
#5 - Dr. Jekyll, Orthodontist
#6 - I'm Out of My Body . . . Please Leave a Message
#7 - Never Trust a Cat Who Wears Earrings
August 20, 2008
Being the kids' department head when I worked at a bookstore, I saw these books a lot in my chapter books section and decided to see if they were any good so I could decide whether to recommend them to others. They had a surprising amount of somewhat off-color jokes in them, but other than that they were cute but nothing super-special. I just read a few during my lunch break; they take about ten minutes to read.
July 12, 2012
What bugged me about this book is the assumption that two ghosts would become friends just because they're both ghosts. It reminded me of the assumption that parents make that kids can become friends for no other reason than they're the same age or something.
This book could have been better. Makes me really wonder how they'll get along down the road....
This book could have been better. Makes me really wonder how they'll get along down the road....
October 7, 2015
I enjoy the series more than my kids do. I'm not sure if it's too dated or if my kids just aren't into a chapter book series about a boy how has weird things happen to him. This book is a cozy, not-to-scary installment about a ghost who can't spell. Charming, endearing, but maybe too quiet for the action-packed generation of today.
June 2, 2013
GROSSET&DUNLAP Zack files
6/2=70min
Boy, room, messy, ghost, request, house, decide
Discussion question
Do you always keep your room cleaning?
...I don't like cleaning, so it is very hard for me to keep my room cleaning. I know I should clean my room.
6/2=70min
Boy, room, messy, ghost, request, house, decide
Discussion question
Do you always keep your room cleaning?
...I don't like cleaning, so it is very hard for me to keep my room cleaning. I know I should clean my room.
December 9, 2013
They was a weird and strange book about a boy named zack that had a ghost living in his house. The ghost would break stuff and mess things up for him. The ghost was a little girl named wanda who just wanted someone to play with her. So zack has to find someone to play with wanda who is also died.
September 21, 2016
I didn't care for this book. I don't think a children's book needs to get into the subject of "black magic." This was the first of the Zack Files books I have read. So far I am not impressed, but I will read a few more before I make my final opinion on the entire series.
November 29, 2008
i think that wanda the ghost is kinda scary.
April 25, 2010
The Zack Files series will interest 6-8 year olds looking for laughs and outrageous antics! Many of the stories involve wacky science and mystery - a good recipe to engage readers of this age.
December 23, 2010
Wouldn't have given my young child a book where purchasing black candles and reciting a 'banishing ritual' is normalized.
May 22, 2012
Kid on my bus left this book ..so I read it ...not bad...will recommend for boys in 2nd or 3 rd grade....It is a ghost story... fun reading.
July 2, 2012
Fares better than the previous book as far as better plotting. Fun character bits and comedy.
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December 1, 2018I loved these books as a kid. They don't necessarily "hold up" in the sense of being super great books , but I still enjoy them a lot for the nostalgia factor. The ones I read today are the only ones the library had available digitally, but I'm going to look for more elsewhere!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews