The Ghost's Grave

by Peg Kehret

What Josh thought would be the dullest summer of his life, spent with his eccentric great-aunt, turns chilling when he meets the ghost of a coal miner killed in a mine explosion. Willie has been waiting years for some kind soul to dig up his leg and rebury it with the rest of him--only then will he be at peace. Josh agrees to do the grisly deed, but when he digs in the old cemetery, he finds more than Willie's leg bones! Who buried the box of cash in the grave, and why? How far will that person go to get the money back? The Ghost's Grave is a deliciously spooky adventure from a master of suspense.

Genres: Mystery, Horror, Childrens, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Fiction, Ghosts

224 pages, Hardcover

First published August 18, 2005

About the author

Peg Kehret writes middle grade fiction and nonfiction. She's won dozens of state children's choice awards, where kids vote for their favorite book.

When she was twelve, Peg was paralyzed with polio. Most of her protagonists are the age she was then.

A volunteer with animal rescue groups, three of Peg's books are co-authored by Pete the Cat."

Reviews

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ghost's Grave
by Peg Kehret
Narrated by Charles Carroll
This is a charming, funny, and adventurous ghost story with a peg-leg ghost, an evil robber, and a crazy sweet aunt.
A 12 year old boy is sent to stay with a very elderly aunt he doesn't know in the very deep woods. He finds his aunt is a bit different but nice. The tree house also is occupied with a person who has died and can't cross over yet.
A very fun story!

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this book, when it was over i was sad! It is probably one of my favorite books I have read this year. You won't regret reading this amazing, funny, and heart pounding book. When you get to some good parts, your heart starts beading really fast. You don't know when it will stop or start again.

I recommend this book to everyone who likes ghosts. It's not scary, but it is exciting. I hope you will all read this book. YOU'LL LOVE IT!! I really liked it and I wish I could read it again but I don't think it would be the same.

I was jumping every second because I didn't know what would happen next!!

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star Rating: —> 3.5 Stars


A cute, short & sweet little ghost story! Perfect for younger readers—this was actually very wholesome, which seems odd to say about a ghost story, but the truth is the truth ! ;))

[Alaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dove into this quick little audio, available on audible, for a challenge. Not even going to lie about that but it was pretty entertaining as well. So, in a way, it was a plus for me.

The Ghost's Grave definitely flew by. Since it's about a 4 hour audiobook, you'd think that everything would be happening so quickly that you wouldn't understand what's actually happening. Well, don't think that because it was pretty easy to follow.

In it, you will meet a boy named Josh who is living with his crazy aunt over the summer. He wasn't exactly thrilled to be there but then again, who would be after you see your aunt shoot a bat? Yes, a bat. You read that correctly and it was a weird beginning but I was sucked in. Mostly because ghosts came into the picture. Oh lord, the tree house scene about books and then the ghost is like, YOU CAN SEE ME? and he's all excited.

It was definitely cute. Willie was probably my favorite character in the book and I wanted his mystery solved just so he could become an angel. In the end, I think I might dive into another book by this author.

[dani ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was looking for the title of this book for YEARS and i just remembered. good times.

[Avery Wendland · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly thought this book would like scary, spooky ghost, BOO, I’m gonna have nightmares kind of book…. Instead I got a cat 🐈‍⬛ which no complaints. Buuuut???? Where’s the spooky 👻 ghost stuff??? What happened???? Idk the cover over does it in my opinion. Otherwise LOVED IT 🥰

[Lanica · Rating 3 out of 5]

LIBRARIAN REVIEW: (4 stars) This is a book that was truly written for a young audience. It's perfect for a upper elementary or lower middle school audience, but may seem too naive for the more jaded upper level kids. It is simple, and moral and a bit too sweet in places. The author wrote a good and imaginative story; but then, she dumbs it down a bit by telling the reader why each thing in the story is happening. As a reader, that bothered me. I could think it through on my own and know why the main character did the things he did. But, reading it as a kid, I might not be able to see why things were happening in the way they were and so the author is sort of giving a course in logic to her readers.

A boy of twelve is shipped off to spend the summer with an elderly relative. The relationship is exactly what one would expect in this grade level...the boy resents the old woman but then comes to love her.

The boy is mad at his parents, but in the end the summer is grateful.

The boy stumbles upon a mystery and by the end all the loose ends are tied up nicely.

This would be a perfect book for a classroom read-aloud, or a book club discussion. There are no references to sex, or drugs. There are several open-ended questions that can be raised..."Should he have taken the box?" "Whose to blame for the explosion?" "Should he have been allowed to stay in his aunts house alone?" Also, there are bits of history that could be drawn out. The setting is an old mining town. The theme of intergenerational relationships could be explored.

PERSONAL REVIEW: (3 stars)
As mentioned above, I find it annoying when the author disrupts a story by explaining the reasoning behind the character actions. When a character writes the word "HELP" on something and hands it to anther character, I don't need to know that they did it with the hope that other person would then go call the police. There were a lot of places where there was a lot of exposition, but it usually came after a scene that was well-written and necessary. It seemed that the author made a conscious choice to add the thought process of the narrator for the benefit of the young reader.

I really liked the story of the ghosts. It was a good character with a good back-story. Willie is a neat guy and the ending with the hat is perfect, if a little sappy. Florence is mysterious and I like that her story is never closed out or tied up.

The mystery and the gunman was a bit of a stretch. The timing and location was too happily coincidental; although, she tried to explain the location and I could suspend disbelief easily enough.

[Renee]

The Ghost's Grave
By Peg Kehref
Review by Renee Tollon


This book is a about a boy named Josh who goes to live with his aunt for the summer. What he thought would be the dullest summer turns into a mystery full of ghost's, graveyards and even more! When josh meets Willie a ghost of a coal miner he goes to serious measures to dig up a grave, find a box of money, but who's money is it? What will they do to get the money? This book is full of mysterious events and leaves you on the edge of your seat. Does Josh solve the mystery of the Ghost's Grave yard? What will happen? Well if you wanna find out you have to read this wonderful book! You will love the way Peg describes the scenes and puts everything in to prefect detail this book is definitely worth a good read.

[KevinC_E2]

I found this book on the bookshelf in the 8th-grade hallway when I forgot my LA reading book ;) but as I read on, I felt I had the will to finish this book. This book is about a 13year old boy - Josh, who met a ghost in his grandma's backyard and helped the ghost to restore his "peace". I would recommend this book to people who enjoys reading adventure/ghost stories.

[Tena Edlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This isn't really my kind of book, but Peg Kehret is a great author. She can make any book interesting, I swear. My students also agree that Aunt Ethel could give Grandma Dowdel from A Long Way from Chicago a run for her money. :)

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have never met a child in the middle grades who disliked a Peg Kehret book. My third-grade grandson recommended this book to me and told me I would cry at the end, which made me smile. I thought, Why would I cry at the end of a Peg Kehret book? But he was right. Well, I maybe didn't cry but I teared up and was choked up at the end. I can't see a fourth-seventh grader of either gender disliking this book.

[Mellifluous · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this one a long time ago but recently dusted it off and reread it to my little brother as it was his summer reading book.

Honestly, it's an entertaining read for most ages. He was entertained and quite frankly so was I. We ended up finishing the book in about 2-3 days. It's not a long book but I did have to take breaks from reading out loud all the time.

I believe it has 209 pages and twenty chapters. It's a nice comfortable read, a bit suspenseful, but in a kid friendly sort of way. Really nice would recommend.

Hope anybody reading after me enjoys it as much as I.

[Ray Waltz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is really cool to me. It was for a book report when I read it, and it's pretty cool!

[MissSusie · Rating 3 out of 5]

12 year old Josh has to spend the summer with eccentric great aunt he is mad about it and decided to spend his time in the tree house and hope his mom comes to her senses and comes to get him. But soon he meets someone in the tree house who asks him for a crazy favor. The problem is the person is a ghost and the favor is one Josh is not sure he can follow through on. What if there is more to the favor than was asked.

I enjoyed this one more than I expected! I wish we had actually gotten more about Aunt Ethel she was quite a character!

Cute little ghost story 4 hours long

3 1/2 Stars

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was another good story by Peg Kehret. They are family/kid friendly. For as much as Josh dreaded spending the summer with his great-aunt, he sure enjoyed his time there. A little action, mystery, a ghost and more. Worth listening to.

[Jennifer Mangler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A student recommended this book to me last year, and I've finally gotten around to reading it. Good recommendation! I enjoyed the heck out of it. Josh and Willie are great characters and I liked them both a lot, but I was most drawn to Ethel, her cakes (I want one!), and her supper-for-breakfasts.

[Rhea]

Spoilers ahead.

It wasn't the best. The solutions to the problem were terrible. When the thief entered the house, it was solved by calling the police. There were a few mistakes. For example, a lady in the story Mrs. Morris said he daughter's birthday is the next day, although the next day she didn't mention or celebrate it. Instead she took the main character, Josh, to join a baseball team.

[Marvin E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Little boy josh is sent to spent time with her aunt for the summer but he doesn't know whats coming next for him!If you want to read this fascinating story go check out The Ghost Grave.This book is a realistic fiction book,it has adventure and some mystery.In my opinion I believe this one of the best books I ever read because the events were fascinating and bizarre on what is going to happen next.

The story is about a boy named josh, he is going to go visit his aunt for the summer because his parent went to a job that they were told of, so they went to India for the job.Josh wanted to enter the baseball team but he couldn't because he was going to stay with his aunt. So he is living with his aunt for the summer his aunt told him about a tree house he can go check out, so he does and he finds something unsusual about the tree house.One day he was at the tree house he left his book at the tree house while he was looking around the cat he found.When he came back in the tree house he found that he books was not where he left it.Then a ghost appers,he is not a bad ghost.The ghost is named Willie the ghost wants him to help him put his leg with the rest of his body.There is a bad guy named Mr. Turlep that almost kills josh because he stole something that was from him but it wasn't.Josh is save because the police comes to help him and save him. The setting is in an old town in carbon city and in a grave yard this setting is important because in these two setting is where everything mostly happens.The conflict was person verses person because josh has a conflict with the antagonist which in this story is Mr. Turlep the guy that works at the bank.Josh helps a ghost name Willie, Josh helps Willie get his leg back with his whole body on his grave.The theme is that friends don't judge a bpp[k by its cover and be curious.Josh didn't judge Willie for being his friend and he was curious about the box that the guy wanted and turn it in.

The book is very good book,it has some scary moments and some funny moments.One of the quotes that stood up to me is when Josh said he was going to eat Brussels sprout for the whole summer and that when he goes back home he will not be able to lift the baseball. This quote reminds me of my self that i don´t like to eat some vegetable and I don´t want to be so weak that I could not pick up a fork,but vegetables gives you energy they don´t make you weak.This book has friendship and and heart on how Josh and Willie the ghost became friends.

I my opinion this book i could read over and over again.This book has lots of interesting events such as when Josh met Willie, when Josh aunt kills a bat with a shot gun.The part that i loved the most is when Willie moved on to be an angel because Josh gave love to his heart.Another part that fascinated me is when Josh help the ghost that he was not scare of being with him.

In conclusion I tough this book was great.I would give it 5 star rating on how good it was and how much heart , comedy , scary parts it had.I would recommend this book to my friends Julian Martinez,Alexis Tennezaca and Yann Balcala.This book is about a kid who went to hard times and dangerous times too to help his friend Willie.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book that CJ wanted me to read. She initially bought it for herself at her school's book fair, but for whatever reason (maybe too scary?) she decided she didn't want to read it anymore and gave it to me as a present.

Of course, I didn't hesitate! Well, it took me awhile to actually take it and read it. I forgot about it but I finally remembered.

Not only did I want to read it at of basic interest in the book, but the idea that my daughter wanted me to read something she initially thought she was interested in. I remember reading books at her age -- devouring them like crazy -- and whenever my dad read one of my books, it made me feel, I don't know, like my interests really mattered? Like I wasn't just a kid? It made me feel GOOD that I could discuss a book with my dad. That he genuinely cared about my ideas *and* that he shared my passion for reading (who, along with my mom, I owe credit to for my liken to books).

So I wanted to 'recreate' this opportunity as the parent. And although she hadn't read the book, I did share the story with her and Mi-Mi, which then somewhat encouraged her to say "well, maybe I will read this book".

The book is quite cute and sweet and a great novel for CJ's age and beyond. This would have been exactly the kind of book I would have bought from the Scholastic Book order form for my own enjoyment, so at 39 years of age, I could still enjoy reading something like this.

Josh is a young 12 year old boy who suddenly loses his summer at home playing baseball, to spending it with an old aunt in another state...an aunt not by blood, but by his step-father's genes.

What happens to Josh that summer is more than any baseball game could provide: he bonds with a mother cat (Mrs. Stray) and her three kittens, he sees his aunt shoot a bat down and enjoyed the best cakes ever made in the universe, and most of all, he befriends Willie the coal miner, a ghost who past away in a coal mining disaster in the early 1900s.

Willie has one request he's had for over a century: to reunite his leg bone (that he lost in the explosion) with the rest of his body. The leg was buried in the town's cemetery; his body somewhere else.

And since Josh is one of very few humans that can see and hear him, he begs Josh to do this. Josh reluctantly agrees and the task to do this brings other surprises that I'll leave for others to enjoy.

I really enjoyed this -- great characters and a wonderful sense of humor that is very real. It was SO MUCH better than the past couple of books I've read and I'm now looking forward to my next book, our book club choice of The Eyre Affair.

[Ronda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Josh has just moved to a new state with his mother and new step-father. He doesn't know anyone in his new town yet, but is excited because he just found out that he was selected to play on his school's summer baseball league team. The only catch? He can't play baseball that summer because his mom and step-dad have to travel to India. To make matters worse, he will have to spend the summer in a little coal-mining town out in the middle of nowhere with a great-great aunt he's never met. He figures he's in for the dullest, most horrible summer ever. The bus drops him off at a little general store (no bus station--town's too small) and that's when he meets his great-great aunt for the first time. The ride to her house is hair-raising--her old truck does NOT have seat belts (yep, the truck is so old, it was made before seat belts were required), which wouldn't worry him nearly so badly if she didn't drive down the middle of the road (instead of in a lane like normal people). When they finally arrive safely at her house (phew!), he's checking out the house when he hears a blood-curdling scream. He runs to the kitchen where he finds his great aunt chasing a bat. (She really doesn't like bats, and especially not in the house.) He's figuring that if they turn the lights out and stop moving, they can shoo the bat out the door or out a window, but his great-aunt is having none of that. She goes out of the room and comes back--with a shot gun--and shoots the bat. Do you think this turns out to be the dullest, most horrible summer ever? Nope. Add to this a stray cat, a one-legged ghost, and a mysterious theft and you have the the makings for a great summer-time read. Check it out! This book won the Intermediate division of the 2007-2008 Volunteer State Book Awards.

[Isabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story was about kid named Josh. Josh’s parents went on a trip and left him with his Aunt. There was a bat in the house. She got out her rifle and tried to shoot it. The Aunt had a sister and her name was Aunt Petunia. They always went to this tree house in the woods and there was a miner named Willey. He died in a mining accident. One of the miners were smoking a cigarette and the mine blew up. Everybody in the mine died. They were all buried by each other. Willey did not want to be buried by the guy who killed him. The main characters in this book are Willey the dead miner, Josh the kid with his Aunt, and Aunt Petunia the Aunts sister and the one who is a peacock. Before Josh came there was a robbery for a new animal shelter. They raised a lot of money. Then they were on there way to the bank and this guy stole all of the money. They did another fundraiser but only got a little bit of money.

Willey was my favorite character because he popped up everywhere and Josh never knew where he went. They always went to the chemistry because that was where Willey’s leg was buried. Willey wanted his leg to be with the rest of his body and not by the person who killed all of the miners. When he and his Aunt were eating they would always have vegetables with their food. Everyday Josh wrote to his parents and said he had a good time. One day his Aunt fell and broke her leg and she had to go to the hospital. She hated hospitals. Josh was alone in the house for a couple of days before he got a visitor. He thought it was one of his Aunts customers, but it was the man from the cemetery. He came to get his money. If you want to learn more, read the book.

[*Cody* Hubble · Rating 5 out of 5]

so far this is a really interesting book, it is about a 12 year old boy who goes to live with his great great Aunt Ethal. the first day he gets their has alredy known he has moved in with a lunetic, because right when he walks in through the front door Aunt Ethal grabbed her shot gun and shot a bat. Next he finds a tree house in the woods behind Aunt Ethal's house.he finds out that the treehouse is haunted by a ghost who was a coal miner back in 1945.Well to make the ghost an angel josh must find all the bones to willy (the coal miner). When josh goes to the graveyard to dig up the bones he discovers that their is a box that contained $100,000 dollers then he remembered what ethal was saying about the pet adoption center. Someone robbed the bank and stole $100,000 dollers in cash.So he took it home and when he got home the robberer was standing in the door way and then josh ran around the house and threw the box into the drier and he called the police and he kept the box hidden long enough for the police to get to the house and the thief was arrested

[Noorain K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last week I started reading The Ghost's Grave by Peg Kehret it is the best book ever! One reason it is a great book is because of how addicting it is once you pick it up you just don't want to put it down. Kehret is good at making the book interesting one part that is interesting is when Josh has to dig up these leg bones for a ghost named Willie without letting anyone noticing he is being a grave robber and he didn't want to end up in juvenile detention and let his aunt Ethel figure out. The main idea is that Josh comes to visit his aunt Ethel and when he goes to this tree house his book always moves it is a ghost named Willie he died from a mine explosion. He told Josh to do him a favor he said to move his leg(in town cemetery) next to the rest of his body(by a lake) that's all I've read. My favorite part is when Josh has to take the leg bones to the river this is an very hard task plus someone could see you and call 911 and put you in jail. This book so far deserves five stars because it is so interesting.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Ghost's Grave is a children's novel which was nominated for Connecticut's Nutmeg Award. It tells the story of a boy sent to live for a summer with a great-aunt he's never met and ends up meeting a ghost.



My boys really enjoyed this book, and I understand why: the main character is thrust into a new situation against his will, he relies upon himself to solve a mystery, and there is a real ghost, not some Scooby-Doo ghost that is really the innkeeper in a costume. Boys of 8 and 10 years of age don't see the predictable plotline the way that adults do. That isn't to say it's a bad book for kids; it just wasn't that fun for me to read, and it kind of wasted my time. Parents: don't worry, there is no sex, drugs, language, or even rock-n-roll in this one. It's safe, unless you have some religious conviction that precludes reading books about ghosts.

[Catherine C · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished The Ghost's Grave by Peg Kehret. I think it is a good book because it is exciting and funny. It is about a boy named Josh who goes to his aunts house for the summer. His aunt has a tree house. He soon finds out the tree house is haunted by a coal miner ghost named Willie. Willie had lost his leg.His leg was buried at the cemetery but his body is buried at his favorite fishing spot. Willie asks Josh to move his leg bones from the cemetery to where the rest of him is buried but the question is will Josh do it? I would give this book 5 stars because it was exciting and attention grabbing.

[Caden Y · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is 209 pages of wonderful literiture. The main character is Josh and I connect to him because I have been sent to a relatives for a whole summer and thought it was going to be boring but it turned out to be not that bad. I gave this book five stars because it made me keep on wanting to read it and not stop till I get to the end. It reminded me of when I found some money on the ground when I was just running around. The ending was kinda scary because I thought Josh was going to get hurt but then it turned out good and that made me feel good.

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

my favorite part was when aunt Ethel shot a bat and it splatered all over them. I don't think the bat died because the book said it flew away.But it might have died any way Josh go's into a tree house he loves it there.Some people say the tree house is haunted but nobody beleaves them.Josh dosn't beleave them ether I think he's going to
stay the night there.I think something's going to happen to Josh.


2/24/10

[Natalia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story was okay but I feel the writing was lacking - it felt flat, monotonous and emotionless. I will not be recommending this book to my kids, although I like the premise of this story and it felt sweet and innocent at times. I wish the author was more skillful at expressing emotions of the characters. This story did have a potential to be good however not realized.

[Kellie · Rating 1 out of 5]

The voice is all wrong. The protagonist is a 12 year old boy, but he often reads like a grown woman. Probably because a grown woman wrote the novel and didn't really capture his voice very well. I lost interest toward the end and just forced myself to finish it.

[Dylan Jentsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is a cool way to look at a ghost story. Because instead of him being mean he is friendly. And the way Willie (Wilber) and Josh become friends. It's not a scary book so if your scared of ghosts don't worry you can still read it. I think it's a good book and everyone should read it.