Ghost Of Sifty, Sifty Sam

by Angela Shelf Medearis

To win a $5000 reward, a chef named Dan agrees to stay in a haunted house overnight and when he meets a very hungry ghost, he gets more than he had expected

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Halloween, Food, Fantasy, African American, Ghosts

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1948

Reviews

[SaraLaLa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story on a whole wasn't terrible. A ghost haunts a house. Realtor wants to sell the house, but needs someone to drive the ghost out. Dan, a chef takes on the job for $5000. The story leaves some major issues with this story, though...

Why is the ghost called Sifty-Sifty Sam? Why did Dan the cook think he was smart enough and crafty enough to take the ghost on? He does nothing to demonstrate this. Also, the line "I'm the ghost of Sifty Sifty Sam. I'm on the lake near the man." The lake near the man? That sounds weird. I was wondering what man. Is there a statue near the lake? A dead body on the ground? And the line changes throughout the book to "... I'm on the porch near the man." The man thing just sounded like it was randomly put there to rhyme with Sam. It wasn't until he says, ".... I'm in the room - right next to the man," that I realized that he was referring to Dan, the cook! Sometimes the book rhymes and has a definite rhythm, and other times it does not. I think I wish it was more consistent.

Some of the description is great: "Then the most awful thing happened to poor Dan. His teeth started making music all by themselves. His knees knocked together and his shivering feet tapped on the floor in time to the beat."

There's a happy ending, but... it was okay. A good thing is that it's not scary (especially once you get half way through), so it'd be fun to read it to a kid, especially around Halloween.

[Beth Cusack · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must have read this book over 200 times and loved every minute of it. Unique art work. AND BOY are the words a pure delight to read. Our family copy is well-loved. My son now 19 years old has it with him and now I wish I could read it again.

[Ryan Pfeiffer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice little story with beautiful illustrations. I didn't quite understand the inconsistent rhyme scheme, which made it a little awkward to read, but that's about my only criticism. I read it a little late, but it's a great book for Halloween!

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

The illustrations were incredible! They were so rich and creepy. I don't know if I've ever seen a picture book with art this amazing to look at. The story was silly and fun. Really glad I checked this one out.

[Sara Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this! My daughter picks her own books from the library. This one takes place in east Texas, which is where we live, and has characters of color! It also rhymes.

[Tears for Breakfast · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book to read during the spooky season. I don't rate many kids books 5 stars but this one was clever and engaging for the kids and has a spooky undertone but not scary.

[Shaniya Wilson]

Deep in east Texas was a house that the people around there believed to be haunted by a ghost called Sifty Sifty Sam. After a realtors many attempts at selling this house he decides that he would pay anyone to spend just one night there to convince people that the ghost has vacated the house. In trying to get people to come the realtor put up a sign that said “to anyone brave enough and smart enough and crafty enough to stay in the house all night long will get a reward of $5,000”.So chef Dan thinking that he lived up to all of those standards decided that he would stay there for the night .After a thorough examination of the house Dan starts cooking .In the midst of frying some meat he heard ghost like sounds but convinced himself that it was his imagination . Soon he found out that it wasn’t and it was indeed the ghost of Sifty Sifty Sam. After Sam angrily introduces himself he quickly ate all of Dan’s scorching meat and grease and promptly demanded more. However the request kept coming .By the end of the cooking filled night Sam was finally done and would do anything to always have Dan’s cooking. After being rewarded with his $5,000 Dan bought the old house and turned it into a restaurant. Sam and Dan came up with the perfect deal. Dan would cook but Sam hade to wash the dishes. And they lived on happily.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My niece really liked this book. I was afraid that it might be a little too scary for her (I even read it in my scariest voice), and when we got done she said, "Um, Auntie? That book was *not* scary." So there you go. I guess kids today are less fearful than they were when I was a kid, or maybe I was just a chicken. :-)

Anyway, the story is really cute, the pictures are beautiful, and it's just an all around good, entertaining read. My niece even read it to me, which usually means that the text captures her attention and she wants to try rolling it off her tongue, so that's just great--can't do better than that.

[Courtney Gayle]

This book is about a house that was haunted by the ghost of Sifty-Sifty Sam. If you stayed in the house you were rewarded 5,000 dollars. A chef moved in and fed the ghost. You can use this book in your classroom as you talk to your students about stereotypes and how not to judge just based off appearance and what you might hear from others. Because the book was about a ghost it is fantasy. Super cute book. I'd use this around Halloween in my classroom.

[Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very nicely written ghost story for the elementary set. Chef Dan accepts the challenge of spending the night in the haunted mansion in hopes of earning the $5000 reward. The ghost of Sifty Sifty Sam is just hungry. This is a perfect match, and children were all chanting "crispy delicious batter-dipped fish" by the story's end.
Suspenseful, but not too scary.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to a cooking class with my dad when I was young, (probably four or five, at most), and the teacher was Angela Shelf Medearis, the author. At the end of the class, my dad bought me this book, and she signed it for me, and I still read it all the time.

[Jeffrey Ellsworth]

There is a haunted house and a reward for whoever can stay all night in it. A chef takes the challenge and he cooks all night for the ghost. The chef then buys the house and they open a restaurant there and the ghost agrees to clean dishes for food.

[Alexis Levine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very cute and mysterious book. My first graders loved it and kept asking to read it over and over again! The illustrations are wonderful and each pages leaves you wanting to read more! When I read this with my first graders we focused on comprehension skills!

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining and delicious romp into the darker side, children who enjoy slightly creepy takes will appreciate this ghost story. Perfect for read-alouds, this comical and fun story about a chef who encounters a ghost will be a hit if told with appropriate spookiness. Highly recommended.

[Kaylee Bostick]

May be scary for young readers. Dan is a chef who agrees to try to rid a house of a ghost whose name is Sifty Sifty Sam. Sam chef cooks the ghost a New Orleans-styled dinner and gets rid of him. I might use this in the class when talking about fables.

[Ragan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful semi-scary, but also funny picture book. I believe that it is currently out of print but you can buy it used.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another one of my kids favorite. Great play with words and a fun tale.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a spooky, atmospheric book! It does seem geared toward a younger audience, but not too young, or they'll have nightmares! Great around Halloween time...

[Charlotte Osborn-bensaada · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite ghost books. Great cadence and message of perssverance.

[Dawn]

A wonderful story ! Read to my Grands. Wonderful illustrations by Jacqueline Rogers

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this picture book, it is a singy-songy book, good for my kids at school, and that is where is is going on the 5th!

[Joy Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

good story. I would have liked a little more rhyming

[Morgan]

This is a great book to show that we should not make judgments about people and that we all have hidden talents.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite children's books of all time. My kids absolutely love it.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is a bit weak but this is a really fun book to read aloud. My audience of 20+ 2nd graders thoroughly enjoyed the "just right" amount of scariness.