Ghosted

by Leslie Margolis

Ellie Charles ghosted her best friend―and her actions come back to haunt her. A heartwarming and funny middle-grade story of redemption from Leslie Margolis.

Thirteen-year-old Ellie Charles has everything going for she’s the smartest, prettiest, best-dressed, and most popular kid at Lincoln Heights Middle School. She’s also the meanest, by design. Ellie’s got sharp edges, which she uses to keep herself at the top of the social food chain.

But one night, hours before her school’s winter dance, a frightening accident leads her to encounter a ghost who just might change everything. This ghost, of a girl dressed all in black, makes Ellie visit her own past, present, and future―reliving her parents’ divorce, her struggles in school, and worst of all, her massive falling-out with her best friend, Marley. Can what Ellie sees inspire her to change her ways? And is a new perspective enough to save her life?

Genres: Middle Grade, Ghosts, Friendship, Realistic Fiction, Childrens, Fiction, Young Adult

256 pages, Paperback

First published October 23, 2018

About the author

Leslie Margolis is author of numerous books for children, including the Maggie Brooklyn Mysteries and the Annabelle Unleashed series. Her novel, Boys Are Dogs, was turned into the Disney Channel movie Zapped, starring Zendaya. Leslie’s most recent books, If I Were You, We Are Party People and Ghosted, are published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Leslie lives in Los Angeles with her family. Her two kids have read some of her books, and think they are okay. For more information, please visit www.lesliemargolis.com.

Reviews

[Mark Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ellie Charles rules Lincoln Heights Middle School. Everyone wants to be her friend and everyone wants to please her. She's top of the class academically, president of the student body, and chairperson of every committee that matters. Maybe she rules with an iron fist, but no one seems to mind - at least as best Ellie can tell.

The book opens the day of the winter dance. Naturally, Ellie is chair of the dance committee, and it is going to be awesome! However, when Ellie falls off a ladder, she finds herself having a freaky out of body experience. Suddenly, she's back five years ago when her best friend, Marley, and Marley's two dads lived across the street. Back before her father left her and her mother right before Christmas. Why is she witnessing these events again? And who is the Girl in Black who seems to be following Ellie on this trip down memory lane?

Being a big fan of A Christmas Carol, I had to give this modern middle grade take on the classic a try. While I enjoyed aspects of it, including a few clever nods to the original, I felt the book was lacking overall. Ellie is just so mean it is hard to root for her. The book spends much of the time in the past, and Ellie's sad past doesn't help things. The expected ending seems abrupt and short, so we don't get as big a pay off as we would like after our trip with Ellie. Then again, it might just be that I'm not the target audience. Either way, this won't be making my list of beloved spins on the Dicken's classic.

Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish the second half was a little bit longer. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Review coming up.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that." She's not.

Move over, Scrooge. You've been ousted by a truly diabolical, power-hungry, nastier-than-thou protagonist. She's 13, and it all started because her parents divorced five years ago. It's their fault, for reals. Why couldn't they have been nice parents who knew better than to have adult problems that would ruin Christmas--probably on purpose--for their sweet, precious, and innocent daughter?

There's absolutely nothing to like about Ellie Charles. She is ruthless, vicious, and revels in the power she wields. No one is actually worried about her well-being when she falls from a ladder while decorating the gym for the winter formal, but those five minutes of being knocked out cold lead to an ghostly inspection of Ellie's life since that fateful pre-Christmas night. From understandable shock and misery, to immature shyness and insecurity, directly into the pinnacle of mean-girl perfection.

For those who know the essential framework of A Christmas Carol, the outcome won't be a surprise. What may come as a surprise is the alacrity of the turnaround, as well as the astonishingly petty future event that triggers it. The tale never wavers in its heavy-handed critique of mean-girl bullying that manages to both vilify and excuse the behavior in the same turn. Ellie is cruel beyond anything I saw as an 8th grader; she's also merely a product of her parents' (mostly her dad's) callous choices.

As for Marley, I had moments of dread, wondering if the book was going to veer into territory marked by bullying and suicide. It is, most certainly, implied that she's a ghost. But ... she's not? And it's her future high-school self that appears to have paranormal powers? Or maybe this really is entirely in Ellie's head, but that possibility is never offered.

On the whole, this book will likely appeal to middle grade readers who love intentionally over-the-top drama in their stories. Those looking for a nuanced exploration of bullying, middle-school dynamics, and the hurt that can sometimes fuel mean behavior will want to look elsewhere.

[T.J. Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

True to my typical modus-operandi, I didn't read the short description of this book before starting. I just liked the name, genre, and publisher, so I picked it up. It didn't take long for me to discover, to my approval, that this was a (rough) retelling of Dickins's A Christmas Carol, one of my all-time faves! Honestly speaking, I'm surprised, however, that I continued long enough to make this discovery, as the main character was so abrasive, so unlikable, so not my type of protagonist... But something drew me forward. The story-telling style? The writing? The perspective of the narrator? I'm not quite sure. But intrigued I was. And soon I, like Ellie, had tumbled fully into her past/present/future, and just had to go along for the ride! Glad I did! The message is clear and, for me, intuitive and obvious. But it can never hurt to restate the obvious, especially to middle schoolers, who are still trying to discover and define themselves. The message is as true to today's middle school students, as it has always been over the ages: If you are nice/caring/considerate/respectful/ towards people (all people), life will be easier, more enriching, more satisfying, more full of love, and more fun!

I received a copy of this book from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[margaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

i really liked how this book shows how much power a person can have, but how they can also be the most insecure and weak person. i really liked this book, and the ending was totally worth it!

[Courtenay · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like Margolis' other books, so I picked this up solely on author name. But my daughter (14) and I both decided this was not one either of us wanted to read. The protagonist in chapter one was way, way too mean, tearing hard-workers' art apart. Maybe because we both know how hard it is to create beautiful art. I told her I don't want to spend any time reading more about a bully I care nothing about, and she agreed. Sorry. Any book I don't finish gets a one star. But that doesn't mean I won't read more of her books, this one just rubbed me the wrong way from her "too-perfect" beginning. What a brat.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd give this one a 3.5. Although I knew from the outset how everything was going to turn out, I eagerly read on to see how close this middle grade novel would mirror its inspiration, Charles Dickens' classic A Christmas Carol. While there are plenty of similarities, there are also enough differences to keep readers engaged although they really won't be surprised by the ending. Ellie Charles is one of the meanest girls around. She rules her eighth grade class at Lincoln Heights with a steel hand, and nobody ever dares to stand up to her. When the book opens, she's on a mission to destroy several members of the school's semi-formal dance committee, taking great delight in ridiculing some and belittling the artistic efforts of others. It's almost impossible to read those first pages without wincing in sympathy for her victims. But after she falls from a ladder while adjusting an essential decoration, someone from her past shows up and takes her back in time to when she was the most vulnerable. Just as fans of Dickens' classic see with Scrooge, readers of this story begin to see the origins of what led to the monster Ellie has become. Scene by scene, her pain and loneliness are revealed as her present day veneer of perfection is stripped away. In the end, almost impossibly, readers can feel sorry for this girl whose father seemed to have little time for her and who threw away her friendship with Marley Winters, her stalwart childhood pal. Wow! If reading this one doesn't make someone change his/her ways and determine to be nicer, I don't know what will. This is a good read for the approaching holidays, and the author has created someone to rival Scrooge in carelessness and downright meanness. It's a wonder that she has anyone at all who cares about her.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ghosted by Leslie Margolis, 243 pages. Farrar Straus Giroux (Macmillan), 2018. $17.

Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG (mean girls); Violence: PG (accident, no blood)

BUYING ADVISORY: MS - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

8th grader Ellie "rules the school." Academically she is top of her class, and socially, well, let's say she's very controlling and pretty mean, so she doesn't get much pushback. While decorating for the winter prom, Ellie falls from a tall ladder and has an out of body experience where she, accompanied by a "girl in black", revisits the scenes of her past, present and future - watching her parents divorce, her betrayal of her best friend Marley, and her rise to the person she is today - even seeing what she may become in the future if things don't change.

Told in the format of "A Christmas Carol,"I felt this was an interesting premise, however, Ellie has few redeeming qualities. I think I liked Ellie even less than Scrooge. I get how tough times can make someone bitter and angry, but Margolis takes mean girl to a whole new level, wow. I wasn't even routing for Ellie to change. She's just too mean, and gets away with it.

Lisa Librarian
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2019...

[Kiera · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know the point of the book was for Ellie Charles to go on a journey to become a better person a la A Christmas Carol, but this girl was a real piece of work before. She did several despicable things to her classmates and mother. She humiliated Jeremy Hinkey to the point that he cried and kicked him off the winter dance committee. She spitefully ripped up a painting that her classmates Reese Jeffrey and the drama kids worked on for weeks for the dance. She read books at the library on how to act like a bully and a mean girl. She actually said she likes making people cry and fear her.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. This quote from the book sums up her mindset:

"The more horrible I am, the more people fear me, and the more people fear me, the more they respect me."

So, the rest of the book explores Ellie's past (i.e. her friendship with Marley Winters, her parents' divorce), present (i.e. how she treats her classmates), and future (i.e. the Hawaii trip, her high school prom) guided by the girl in black.

I felt the most sorry for were Marley and Ellie's mom. Ellie's mother went through a nasty divorce with her husband on Christmas when Ellie was 8. She tried to make sure her daughter still had a good Christmas by giving her an art set. However, Ellie (EE) still upset about the divorce, acted like a brat because she wanted a purple bike like Marley and made a scene at dinner with the Winters family. EE later spitefully cut up the quilt her mom stitched for her. If Ellie chose to go to Hawaii, she planned on ditching her mother for the slim chance her absentee father would spend time with her. Ellie's mom was heartbroken because they always spent Christmas together.

As for Marley, Ellie was jealous of her big whole family. When Ellie accidentally makes Marley a laughing stock at school due to sending a humiliating video of Marley to a friend, she doesn't speak up to defend her and later ghosted her. In the end, Ellie apologizes for her past actions and Marley calls her out on it. But she does forgive Ellie on the condition she has a lot to make up for.

[Cynthia Parkhill]

I wanted to read this book because it's from the perspective of the mean girl -- a perspective that I think is important to understand if we're to combat bullying.

Why do people engage in bullying behavior? What needs or desires does it speak to? What would it take to get them to stop?

In the case of Ghosted, the bully point-of-view character is a girl named Ellie.

First of all, what I like about this book is the idea that someone can change. Who you are now does not define you forever. That said, I didn't find it believable when Ellie changed for the better.

(I'm going to venture that this revelation is not a spoiler; given the ghostly-visitation and reliving past experience that comes right out of A Christmas Carol.)

Truthfully, I found Ellie so unlikeable, so wholeheartedly committed to nastiness, that I just couldn't relate. She doesn't just become a bully; she actually reads books about mean girls so she can be all-the-better at meanness.

I really tried to relate to Ellie as the story's main character. But it seemed like every time I managed to evoke some sympathy for Ellie, she would lash out with hateful actions toward everyone in her life.

What bothered me was that Ellie seemed so very calculated in her meanness. And I didn't understand why people put up with her when she treated everyone like dirt.

Reading this book has piqued my interest to explore other books by Leslie Margolis. And truthfully, I know that I am not the target reader for this book. My expectations, my reactions, were specific to me.

I might yet encounter a reader for whom I believe this book is a good match. I will think carefully about that pairing, just as I would with other titles.

[Jana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had the opportunity to read a NetGalley digital ARC of this middle grade fiction book in exchange for a review. Just in time for the holiday season, this book is a clever, modern twist on the Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol. And just like the original story, this one has lessons on kindness for everyone.

Eighth grader, Ellie Charles, is the most popular, powerful girl at her middle school. Everyone is afraid of her and wants to be her friend. She’s just as mean as she can possibly be, as the students are preparing for their holiday dance. But a nasty fall off of a ladder results in a hit to the head that takes her on an important journey – to her past, her present, and her future.
The trip to the past allows readers to see the painful events in Ellie’s life that led to her decision to become mean and popular. The trip to the present allows Ellie to see how her behavior affects those around her. And the trip to the future allows her to see what her high school experience will be. If readers are familiar with A Christmas Carol, it will definitely inspire comparisons between Ellie and Ebenezer Scrooge. And the ghost that serves as Ellie’s tour guide is her best friend from earlier days, Marley.

[Mina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a modern take on the classic novel A Christmas Carol. Ellie, age thirteen, hides her broken past behind a sharp, demanding exterior.



When her father leaves her and her mom before they were supposed to announce their divorce, with almost all of Ellie's Christmas presents, Ellie and her mom visit her best friend and her two dads. But things get worse when her friend gets the bike she has been wanting, but Ellie has been wanting to, while she gets an art kit with no paper because her dad drove off with most of the presents in his car, (including a matching bike to her friend's). That's just the start of the hard shell that molds around Ellie's heart. There are more events leading up to her fall in the gym.

Afterwards, she meets a mysterious girl in all black who shows her events from her past present, and future. Will she change her bitter ways? Read to find out!

There are some parts where I feel like people should stand up or tell a teacher, like when Ellie rips part off on of the theater student's mural. But otherwise, I think this is a really good, emotional book.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book at the library about two years ago and read it, and it was just one of those books that I remembered specific details about, so, after seeing it in the library again, I took it out to reread it.
Something I love about this book (Ghosted) is that it has a perspective of a bully, which I don't find in books that often. This bully (Ellie) is really hardcore, and I found that pretty believable.
I will say though, that this book is pretty fast paced. Ellie goes into some sort of coma when she falls off a ladder in her school gym, making her look at herself in a different perspective, making her rethink her actions and her behavior. It would be a little more enjoyable if the book slowed down a little, making Ellie really absorb herself in the situation.
Overall, I love the general idea of this story. It's a great book, and one that I do not regret rereading.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern day re-telling of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" with mean girl Ellie Charles as the main character.
When Ellie transitions to middle school, she does some research first on how to be popular, how to be a leader. So she is very active, very involved, wears all the newest fashions - and is very, very mean. In the process, she alienates her best friend from childhood, Marley, who stuck by her through some rough times but Ellie does not care about that. However, a fall from a ladder brings a ghost dressed in black that takes her on a trip through memory lane, into the present, and into the future as well. Will it be enough to cause Ellie to change her bad behavior?
A passable story; Ellie has her reasons for her actions but is absolutely blind to the feelings of others.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

8th grader Ellie "rules the school." Academically she is top of her class, and socially, well, let's say she's very controlling and pretty mean, so she doesn't get much pushback. While decorating for the winter prom, Ellie falls from a tall ladder and has an out of body experience where she, accompanied by a "girl in black", revisits the scenes of her past, present and future - watching her parents divorce, her betrayal of her best friend Marley, and her rise to the person she is today - even seeing what she may become in the future if things don't change.

Told in the format of "A Christmas Carol,"I felt this was an interesting premise, however, Ellie has few redeeming qualities. I think I liked Ellie even less than Scrooge. I get how tough times can make someone bitter and angry, but Margolis takes mean girl to a whole new level, wow. I wasn't even routing for Ellie to change. She's just too mean, and gets away with it.

For this and more of my reviews, visit Kiss the Book at https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2019...

[Bari · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading We Are Party People by Leslie Margolis, I decided to read this book. I found Ghosted to be very relevant. No matter what type of school you attend, public, private or religious, there may be a girl like Ellie Charles in the school. Ellie attend Lincoln Heights Middle School where she is the most popular girl in school, not to mention one of the prettiest. However, Ellie is not popular because she's nice and kind but the opposite. She prides herself on being mean and enjoys when other students are intimated by her.
While Ellie and her classmates plan the schools winter dance, there is an accident. Ellie meets a ghost and is forced to relive her life through memories of her past. Does this changed Ellie's view on life? Read and find out.

[Regina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leslie Margolis did a fantastic job with her book "Ghosted." This modern twist on Dickens, A Christmas Carol is sure to have middle school readers entertained and turning pages. Thirteen year old Ellie Charles, the main character seems to have her "mean-girl" persona up to par until she falls in the middle school gym right before her big winter dance. She travels back in time, explores the present and gets a peek of the future while being accompanied by a familiar yet unknown ghost. Will Ellie be able to change her awful self in time to change the future ? A must read for middle schoolers and fans of Meangirls everywhere

[Sara Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very cute middle school retelling of A Christmas Carol. I read A Christmas Carol last month, which helped enhance the experience while reading Ghosted.
The first 30 pages or so I really did not know what to think and was a little unclear where this was going.
It takes the modern term of ghosting and also has the added ghost like A Christmas Carol does.
I did have a hard time relating to the character as I was TOTALLY a Marley growing up so I just fell in love with her confidence.
I did receive a copy for free through a Goodreads giveaway but all opinions are completely my own.

For a full review please visit my blog. https://www.hallelujahhill.com/home/2...

[Ruth Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

A middle grade version of A Christmas Carol.
Ellie is more than shocked when her parents are divorced. She decides to become strong, by not letting anyone get in her way, and instead of getting strong she becomes a mean bully.
She is taken through her life, past, present and future, by a ghost version of her former best friend. And she reforms, but this part of the book seems rushed and unreasonable. Parts of her actual reformation are good. The past/present/future lags - blah, blah, blah. Not sure kids will stick with the book. I almost didn’t.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book on Goodreads. The story plot reminds me a lot of "A Christmas Carol". Ellie, is a bully, when she falls and hits her head, "the girl in black" take Ellie through her past, present and future. Ellie gets to see, just how awful she is and that people don't respect her but are actually, afraid of her. In the end, she want to change whom she is and be a better, kinder person. I really enjoy reading this book and would definitely recommend it.

[Mrs. · Rating 2 out of 5]

A "Christmas Carol" type of story when a 13-year-old falls from a ladder and blackout. Yes, she seems to have everything going for her but does one of the bossiest, mean girls in the school really have it all? I rated this low because the main character is just too mean. She spends a summer in the library researching how to manipulate people. Just seems over the top and mean-ness wears on the reader.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is an adaptation of A Christmas Carol but it middle grade format. The main character is very unlikable like Mr. Scrooge. She has an accident at the winters dance and is forced to revisit her past, present, and future. It shows how she became the way she is and how everything will be. Its an average 3.5 star not fantastic but not too bad. Good for Christmas.

[Liz Haggerty · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern-day retelling of A Christmas Carol, Ellie is the most popular girl at her Middle School and she got that way by being mean. As she is setting up for the winter formal dance Ellie falls off a ladder and a mysterious girl shows Ellie her past, present, and future if she keeps being the way she is. You come to find out that she ghosted her former best friend on her path to becoming the awful person she is today.
This book has a lot going on. It deals with the idea that people who are mean tend to be popular, but really it’s just because everyone is afraid of them. It addresses forwarding videos and how you can’t control what happens to something once it’s sent. It covers how parents might feel and how when you post pictures it might not actually be what is really going on. It’s a bit heavy handed with all of that going on however I still think it would be a good book. My only thought is that the ones you might want to read this book are not necessarily going to pick it up.
Upper Elementary, or Middle School

[Dana Middleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ellie is the mean girl - so feared that her classmates dare not step out of line. But when a freak accident takes Ellie back to the past, she gets the chance to save herself and her future. I read this book in one sitting. It was fun and moving and deftly written. A great read for the middle schooler in all of us. I loved it!

[Grete · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I read this aloud to my 9-year-old daughter. I had a bit of a challenging time with just how nasty the main character acted, but it wasn't too bad. At least she had some redeeming qualities. My daughter really loved the book and is already rereading it.

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just really tough to like the main character. There was nothing redeeming about her throughout most of the book. A lot of people have divorced parents who don't treat people the way she treated people.

[Derek Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually read this particular type of book. I enjoyed it. It gave me a feeling of what the younger generation goes through during the dreadful teen years. It brings to mind ghosts of Christmas past, present and future in the journey the author takes Ellie on.

[Kristina Callender · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hated Ellie in chapter one, but I loved her journey of self-awareness and hoped she would change. Ellie's early friendship made me to know she was a work in progress and not just the mean girl she became.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very predictable story line. Very similar to Dickinson's "A Christmas Carol". Ellie sees her past present and future of how mean she was to everyone around her. The moral of the story was to treat others the way you want to be treated.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely sends the right message for a middle grade book! A bit hard to read, just because of the main character's attitude, but that's important to include for the story! I like that it's a more modern telling of Christmas past, present and future kind of thing.