The Shadows (The Books of Elsewhere, Vol. 1)

This book is so good and full of mystery and scariness and I love mystery and scary stories. This is my favorite book.

Creative and curious Olive moves into a huge old house with her mathematician mom and dad. While her parents love her, they don’t really understand her, and she’s often left to her own devices. She explores her new home and is fascinated by all the things left behind when the previous owner died. One item that she finds when she’s rummaging through the closets and dresser drawers is a pair of old glasses. When she puts them on, she sees things move in the many paintings lining the walls of the old house. But that’s not the strangest thing she learns. She finds out that when she wears the glasses, she can actually enter the paintings.With help from the three talking cats who lived there with the previous owner, Olive explores the creepy basement, scary attic, and the worlds painted in the pictures. She makes friends and enemies and tries to ignore the resentful vibes given off by the house itself.Her journey of exploration and discovery lead her not only conquer the evil she encounters but also helps her find her courage.West creates an exciting world and some wonderful and realistic characters. I highly recommend this book.

I wasn't sure how I would like this or even be able to finish it. When I realized that the paintings "came to life" and what Olive was able to do, I was reminded of a very scary story that I read many years ago as a kid in which a monster came out of a mirror to kill a family (enough said). However, Ms. West makes this twist more intriguing than frightening.Olive is a precocious child and is representative of many young kids who don't feel "part of the group". Her search for something to connect to, though, brings her to the brink of a disastrous outcome. Ms. West interjects just the right amount of suspense to keep the reader reading. I'm looking forward to reading about other adventures that Olive has and will recommend this series to my nieces (ages 9 and 10).

Last night I finished up THE BOOKS OF ELSEWHERE: THE SHADOWS, and ohmigosh it was good.It's one of those books where the adult in me thinks, (cue high-pitched nasally adult voice) "Oh, I really like this story. What nice atmosphere. How unique," and the kid in me is like, (cue my real voice) "Ahhh! That's scary. Wow--cool. I want to do that! She did what? The end? Where's the next book!?!?"I was lucky enough to interview the author, Jacqueline West, here: [...].THE SHADOWS is a fast paced read set in Olive Dunwoody's new home--a crumbling Victorian house brimming with rooms to explore and curiosities to discover. Her slightly absent minded, but brilliantly (and hilariously) mathematical parents have no clue what kinds of secrets their home holds. Olive, however, finds herself unraveling a dark and deadly mystery, aided only by three cats and a bratty boy.Atmosphere: Really old house with hidden rooms, paintings you can travel through, cool old spectacles, creepy basements, that prickle at the back of your neck when you know something's not right, overgrown backyards, nosey neighbors, and cats with attitude. In a word: awesome.Language: Jacqueline West is also an award winning poet, and she has this beautiful knack for clear, concise, and completely unique description. There's also lots of witty dialogue that kept me smiling and laughing throughout the book.If you're looking for a fun Middle Grade read, you should seriously check this book out. There's also a pretty cool website for the book that includes sample chapters and clips from the audiobook:[...].

Wonderful! Every book in this series is absolutely fantastic! I purchased them for my nine year old son and started reading the first one while my son was reading a different book. Honestly, I couldn't put it down. My husband and son are thoroughly enjoying them as well.The storys are full of adventure with a bit of suspense and a lot of humor thrown in. A house built by a powerful wizard, paintings you can climb into, one very curious girl and three talking cats! What's not to love?

I absolutely loved it! I love this series! This is a must read series!

Bought this book for my 11 & 12 year old daughters to read and recently read it myself. The storytelling was engaging and imaginative. My daughters loved it and I have to admit that even as an adult it made for a fun quick read. I really liked that the story didn't ever resort to bodily functions or gross out humor to get a laugh. There are references to witchcraft but no written spells or overly scary content. Will likely buy the other books in this series as well.

I prescreen the books I buy for my son to make sure they are appropriate. This book says on the back it is for ages 8+ and my son is 8. I am clearly much older myself. I found this book scary and had to switch from reading it before bed to reading it in the daytime. Now that I have finished the story I have decided not to allow my son to read it until he is 10. At this point he is still afraid of the dark and fears often keep him up at night and I know this book would make the problem much worse. I would not call this book creepy, I would call it horror. I get that others are much less sensitive to this sort of thing, but I feel that the book goes much too far with the scary stuff for 2nd graders. Good book though, just wrong age recommended on the back.

Great book for young teens! Great story and nicely printed and fun graphics. Good gift. Recommend for a special someone.

Wooow!I love this super scary book (not for 8years)

Very good. High quality. It is really worth to buy. You can trust it. Buy it .It is really good item.

I like this book because it's interesting, and about brave girl who feared the house's secrets and it is cool))

Good