The Ghost and the Magic Saber

by Glendon Swarthout, Kathryn Swarthout (arthor)

Random House Library of Congress # 63-14749 "When Newton's parents declared he was to spend his summer on a farm in Michigan -- and practice his flute every day -- Newton was miserable. He was "citified" and he liked it. But when he arrived at his grandparents' farm and found his chief companion was to be a girl, he was mortified! Newton hated his flute, but he hated girls beyond anything. To add injury to insult, Newton found himself in competition with the girl Cassy for his grandfather's prize a magnificent saber from the Civil War. The better farmer by the end of the summer would win the prize, and since Cassy was already an experienced farmer, and also more athletic, luckier, and meaner than Newton, the outcome seemed inevitable. But then, Cassy didn't have a ghost on her side…. Readers will find Newton irresistible (though Cassy had a different opinion, at first). This hilarious tale -- from the first use of Grandfather Pierce's zany invention, the Pierce Mechanical Boy Chastiser, to Cassy's supreme trickery -- is an unforgettable delight." This excerpt is taken from the following website.

79 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1963

About the author

Glendon Fred Swarthout was an American writer. Some of his best known novels were made into films of the same title, Where the Boys Are, The Shootist and They Came To Cordura.

Also wrote under Glendon Fred Swarthout. Twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glendon_...

Reviews

[Miles Swarthout · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Newton's parents declared he was to spend his summer on a farm in Michigan--and practice his flute every day--Newton was miserable. He was "citified" and he liked that. But when he arrived at his grandparents' farm and found his chief companion was to be a girl, he was mortified! Newton hated his flute, but he hated girls beyond anything.

To add injury to insult, Newton found himself in competition with the girl Cassy for his grandfather's prize possession: a magnificent saber from the Civil War. The better farmer by the end of the summer would win the prize, and since Cassy was already an experienced farmer, and also more athletic, luckier, and meaner than Newton, the outcome seemed inevitable. But then, Cassy didn't have a ghost on her side....

Readers will find Newton irrestible (though Cassy had a different opinion, at first). This hilarious tale--from the first use of Grandfather's Pierce's zany invention, the Pierce Mechanical Boy Chastiser, to Cassy's supreme trickery--is an unforgettable delight.

The Ghost and the Magic Saber was my parents' first novella for Young Adults of the 5 YA books they later wrote together. Many story elements from this first kids' book Glendon later reused in his more polished classic Christmas story, A Christmas Gift, which is available as an EBook download, in libraries, and on used book websites. Find it!

All the adult novels and novellas for young adults by the writing Swarthouts are described, along with movie trailers of the 9 films made from these stories, plus screenplays (originals and adaptations), and posted on our literary website -- www.glendonswarthout.com

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 3 out of 5]

C. fiction, children's fiction, grade 3, from stash, keep