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Who's Afraid of the Ghost Train?
Frank Rodgers offers an amusing way to cope with fears, as Robert learns how to use his big imagination to make things on the dreaded ghost train carnival ride appear just a little less scary.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1989
5 people want to read
About the author
Frank Rodgers
132 books10 followersA childhood passion for books, radio and cinema set Frank Rodgers on the road to being a writer and artist. Today, he is the author/illustrator of almost fifty books for children, covering a wide age range from picture books through books for older readers to a novel for teenagers.
As a child, Frank Rodgers was impressed by Frank Hampson's drawings for the original Dan Dare: Pilot of the Future strips and Mervyn Peake's illustrations for Treasure Island. At school, he was generally in the market to swap things for American comics. Inspired by radio shows like The Goons and Journey Into Space, he wrote plays and pressganged family and friends into the cast. Already, he was thinking up - and drawing - all kinds of characters.
He studied Silversmithing and Jewellery at Glasgow School of Art and became an Art Teacher, in his spare time writing pop songs and two stage musicals. His first foray into publishing was as an illustrator of other writers’ work, most notably Humphrey Carpenter’s Mr Majeika books. In 1987, he left teaching to become a full-time writer and illustrator.
Many of Frank’s books have been published in Europe and the US. Described by Scottish Book Trust as 'one of Scotland’s best-loved author/illustrators', he has been a tutor on the Arvon Foundation’s Writing for Children course. Frank enjoys putting on his Ray-bans and either pounding out rock ‘n’ roll on his piano or playing blues guitar.
As a child, Frank Rodgers was impressed by Frank Hampson's drawings for the original Dan Dare: Pilot of the Future strips and Mervyn Peake's illustrations for Treasure Island. At school, he was generally in the market to swap things for American comics. Inspired by radio shows like The Goons and Journey Into Space, he wrote plays and pressganged family and friends into the cast. Already, he was thinking up - and drawing - all kinds of characters.
He studied Silversmithing and Jewellery at Glasgow School of Art and became an Art Teacher, in his spare time writing pop songs and two stage musicals. His first foray into publishing was as an illustrator of other writers’ work, most notably Humphrey Carpenter’s Mr Majeika books. In 1987, he left teaching to become a full-time writer and illustrator.
Many of Frank’s books have been published in Europe and the US. Described by Scottish Book Trust as 'one of Scotland’s best-loved author/illustrators', he has been a tutor on the Arvon Foundation’s Writing for Children course. Frank enjoys putting on his Ray-bans and either pounding out rock ‘n’ roll on his piano or playing blues guitar.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
October 5, 2015
"Robert's house was a perfectly ordinary sort of house. But Robert thought it was full of scary things. He had a big imagination."
He thought a dragon lived in the hall, a noisy steam train chugged through his kitchen, monsters lurked in his toilet and bathtub, bears were imbedded in the fur coats in the closet and little angry men lived under his bed. How spine-chilling is that?
Robert's pals teased him and tried to frighten him saying there were dreadful creatures in their midst. So Robert had a choice to make... to pick a fight or take to flight? He chose flight and boy did he run. He bumped into his Grandpa and together they discussed his unsubstantiated fears. His Grandpa used to be a lion tamer before he retired so he knew a thing or two about facing fears up close and personal. What did he tell Robert that calmed him down and dismissed those nagging fears that kept nipping at his grandson like wild dogs?
Grandpa's wise advice seemed to have solved the problem because when Robert's friends asked him to join them on the Ghost Train ride at the local funfair, Robert heartily agreed. Astonished by his answer they all boarded the train together and it whisked them past witches, ghosts, monsters and skeletons. Oh my!
"Inside the Ghost Train it was scary and eerie and very, very dark."
Do you know who was scared the most? Not Robert, in fact he used his imagination to turn the tables on his friends when the ride terminated and they scattered like a swarm of bees and hightailed it for home - scared silly.
The illustrations are kid-friendly and non-scary. There is a lot of emotion and action portrayed therein and creative imagination is certainly at play. I highly recommend this book. This would be a fun story to share with your little ones at this time of the year. Come on everyone, " All abroad and ride the Ghost Train."
He thought a dragon lived in the hall, a noisy steam train chugged through his kitchen, monsters lurked in his toilet and bathtub, bears were imbedded in the fur coats in the closet and little angry men lived under his bed. How spine-chilling is that?
Robert's pals teased him and tried to frighten him saying there were dreadful creatures in their midst. So Robert had a choice to make... to pick a fight or take to flight? He chose flight and boy did he run. He bumped into his Grandpa and together they discussed his unsubstantiated fears. His Grandpa used to be a lion tamer before he retired so he knew a thing or two about facing fears up close and personal. What did he tell Robert that calmed him down and dismissed those nagging fears that kept nipping at his grandson like wild dogs?
Grandpa's wise advice seemed to have solved the problem because when Robert's friends asked him to join them on the Ghost Train ride at the local funfair, Robert heartily agreed. Astonished by his answer they all boarded the train together and it whisked them past witches, ghosts, monsters and skeletons. Oh my!
"Inside the Ghost Train it was scary and eerie and very, very dark."
Do you know who was scared the most? Not Robert, in fact he used his imagination to turn the tables on his friends when the ride terminated and they scattered like a swarm of bees and hightailed it for home - scared silly.
The illustrations are kid-friendly and non-scary. There is a lot of emotion and action portrayed therein and creative imagination is certainly at play. I highly recommend this book. This would be a fun story to share with your little ones at this time of the year. Come on everyone, " All abroad and ride the Ghost Train."
October 6, 2015
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated in any other fashion for the review and the opinions reflected below are entirely my own. Special thanks to the publisher and author for providing the copy.
As a horror enthusiast since practically birth, I find it really difficult to imagine my children will ever be easily frightened of anything. However, I know there are plenty of children out there who are NOT fans of Halloween, and this book is made with them in mind.
Who's Afraid of the Ghost Train is a reprint of a children's book published in 1988, about a young boy named Robert who is afraid of his own shadow. However, he gets some advice from his grandpa just in time for the local fair. Will Robert survive the haunted house attraction?
The art, which has the gentle and simplistic shading features of colored pencil, is colorful and humorous. Children will have fun identifying exactly what Robert is so afraid of (a teakettle that sounds like a train roaring through his kitchen, for example). Children will enjoy laughing at the grandpa's advice and how Robert uses it during the ride. It may help children who are easily frightened to manage their fears.
One issue with the book is that there are several terms that are either outdated or in British rather than American English, so it may require some Googling or using context clues to determine what the author means.
All around this is a cute, funny story that is great for Halloween (and isn't too scary!)
As a horror enthusiast since practically birth, I find it really difficult to imagine my children will ever be easily frightened of anything. However, I know there are plenty of children out there who are NOT fans of Halloween, and this book is made with them in mind.
Who's Afraid of the Ghost Train is a reprint of a children's book published in 1988, about a young boy named Robert who is afraid of his own shadow. However, he gets some advice from his grandpa just in time for the local fair. Will Robert survive the haunted house attraction?
The art, which has the gentle and simplistic shading features of colored pencil, is colorful and humorous. Children will have fun identifying exactly what Robert is so afraid of (a teakettle that sounds like a train roaring through his kitchen, for example). Children will enjoy laughing at the grandpa's advice and how Robert uses it during the ride. It may help children who are easily frightened to manage their fears.
One issue with the book is that there are several terms that are either outdated or in British rather than American English, so it may require some Googling or using context clues to determine what the author means.
All around this is a cute, funny story that is great for Halloween (and isn't too scary!)
September 27, 2015
Robert's imagination often gets away from him helping him create scary situations out of everyday happenings. With the help of his grandfather, he learns how to cope with his wild imagination. His friends, who are all interested in scary things, could make it even worse when they want to visit the Ghost Train, but Robert gets the chance to put his grandfather's lessons into action. In the end, Robert is able to deal with the scare ride even better than they are. This is a very sweet story that should help children deal with their fears of imaginary monsters whether they hide in the toilet, tub, closet, or under the bed. I thought the illustrations were perfectly done. They are enough to capture a child's attention and imagination while not being overly frightening. I personally wouldn't recommend this book to younger toddlers or those children who have yet to exhibit such fears. It could be a great helping in learning to cope for younger children who are beginning to display imaginitive fear of such things.
I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
October 15, 2015
We received this book via NetGalley to give an honest review.
This is a really cute book to read really whenever but I think it is perfect for the month of October. Robert has a big imagination and he believes that the things in his house are a bit scary. There is a dragon in the hall, a shark in the bathtub and so much more. His grandfather gives him a tip on how not to be scared and how to use his imagination in a fun silly way. So when Robert joins his friends on a ride on the Ghost Train they are surprised, but then the tables turn and Robert ends up scaring them with his imagination but it is not a bad scary it is more of a silly scary. This is a totally fun book to read and the illustrations were done perfectly and went very well with the story being told. K really enjoyed the book and liked Robert's imagination on things in his house, he also told me he wasn't scared at all. Which is a good thing. This is perfect for ages 5 on up.
This is a really cute book to read really whenever but I think it is perfect for the month of October. Robert has a big imagination and he believes that the things in his house are a bit scary. There is a dragon in the hall, a shark in the bathtub and so much more. His grandfather gives him a tip on how not to be scared and how to use his imagination in a fun silly way. So when Robert joins his friends on a ride on the Ghost Train they are surprised, but then the tables turn and Robert ends up scaring them with his imagination but it is not a bad scary it is more of a silly scary. This is a totally fun book to read and the illustrations were done perfectly and went very well with the story being told. K really enjoyed the book and liked Robert's imagination on things in his house, he also told me he wasn't scared at all. Which is a good thing. This is perfect for ages 5 on up.
November 18, 2015
This is a reissued book from 1989, but it is as relevant now as it was then. Robert has a huge imagination and it usually conjures up scary monsters. He is always looking around for these scary creatures. When he talks to Grandpa Jim about them he gets advice about how to deal with the fear. When Robert and his friends go on the Ghost Ride, he is the only one not frightened as he puts Grandpa's advice to work. A great story to help children deal with fear and imaginary frights like the monsters in the closet or under the bed. Great illustrations.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
September 28, 2015
Another stunning picture book from Frank Rodgers.
Frank Rodgers draws and writes using a lovely imagination, and the ghost train characters highlight this so well.
When Robert uses his imagination to see the things he usually fears in a different way, he is able to find the things that others find frightening acceptable.
This book would be a great way to hep youngsters confront their fears, but no child can fail to be entertained by the pictures, especially the dragon vacuum cleaner!
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Frank Rodgers draws and writes using a lovely imagination, and the ghost train characters highlight this so well.
When Robert uses his imagination to see the things he usually fears in a different way, he is able to find the things that others find frightening acceptable.
This book would be a great way to hep youngsters confront their fears, but no child can fail to be entertained by the pictures, especially the dragon vacuum cleaner!
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 16, 2015
This fun book explores how to deal with things that scare you. Of course the best advice comes from the wise one in the family, but it works and helps one feel stronger and happier at the same time. I love the idea of this book during October when children love "scary" stories but might be scared. This book combines scary experience and how to deal with being scared. I'll be getting this one for my school library.
December 13, 2015
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. This did not affect my opinion in any way.
What an adorable book!
My son loves trains and Halloween, so this spooky little treat was a favorite with him. The book was a great story about a boy with a wild imagination. The images were perfect and it reminded me of the books I loved reading when I was growing up.
This is definitely one we'll be owning in print!
What an adorable book!
My son loves trains and Halloween, so this spooky little treat was a favorite with him. The book was a great story about a boy with a wild imagination. The images were perfect and it reminded me of the books I loved reading when I was growing up.
This is definitely one we'll be owning in print!
September 30, 2015
REVIEW BY: Angelina, age 8 years, 11 months
MAY CONTAIN SPOILER:
I liked this book, it was really good. Do you know why it was so good? It was because I used my imagination! This book is about a little boy who imagines monsters, but then he goes on a train and isn't scared.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 5 to 8.
MAY CONTAIN SPOILER:
I liked this book, it was really good. Do you know why it was so good? It was because I used my imagination! This book is about a little boy who imagines monsters, but then he goes on a train and isn't scared.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 5 to 8.
October 31, 2015
We can use our imagination to scare ourselves or to help conquer our fears. It's up to us. I like the message but the story is dry and the illustrations are uninspired.
October 19, 2016
Note: I received a digital review copy of this book through NetGalley.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews