Hoops Shadow

Haunted

by Rich Wallace, Dave Shephard (Illustrator)

After the first day of tryouts for the school basketball team, Stu stays behind to shoot extra free throws--his weak spot. As he's shooting baskets, a boy joins him in the gym. He's wearing a retro jersey, and Stu doesn't recognize him. He tells Stu to come back later, and he'll give Stu tips. Stu returns, and the boy named Randy helps him with his shooting. Stu asks Randy when he went to school there, but the boy disappears. Stu discovers Randy is a ghost. Randy helps Stu make the basketball team, and Stu chooses to wear the ghost's number on his jersey.

47 pages, Library Binding

Published August 15, 2016

Reviews

[Ro Menendez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This early chapter book will delight younger readers who want to read a ghost story but are not ready to tackle, without losing sleep, series such as Goosebumps. The text is written using different colors, fonts, and font sizes to draw attention to certain words, reminiscent of the way the Geronimo Stilton Series is written. The ghost in this story is a young boy who helps the main character with his basketball skills. The way Randy, the ghost, lost his life at the age of 12, in a tragic accident is dealt with swiftly before moving on to the next part of the plot. This is not a scary story, just paranormal.

[Pascale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute book for those little kids at the library who ask me for scary books. I can recommend this without terrifying them. :P

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hoops Shadow is a High/Low book for struggling readers. It uses high interest topics and Low level reading skills to boost the confidence of struggling readers. The publisher has the interest level at 2nd to 8th grade but the reading level at 2nd grade. This book has a story line that all levels could be interested in with a basketball tryout and a ghost. I loved the illustrations that enhanced the story and the book seemed to stand alone with a clear conclusion to the book. I would recommend this book for all students 2nd -3rd grades. It is also good for older struggling readers and English Language Learners.