Charles Day (1)Recensioni

This is a wonderful Halloween tale! I could imagine it being read aloud over the course of a few nights. This book would definitely have made the cut for The Halloween Family Read, (THFR is the event that happened every October when my children and I all slept in the same room and read our favorite spooky stories aloud). The characters in the story were all interesting and easy to relate to. Most of us grew up with a bully and an elderly person who was not the friendliest to children in our neighborhoods. I also had the spooky house and of course listened to legends. This book was comfortable because I had that setting but it also had the right amount of spooky to make you want the lights on until you can get to the store and buy a pumpkin to keep you safe. The story reminded me of Goosebumps so fans of that series will love this book. I can see this being made into a Halloween show.
Parents there is some cursing in the book. Nick the main character is 17 so 'thought' curse words happen. I do not recall him actually using them. He has a little sister and the natural rivalry is there along with sibling love. He still obeys his parents though has his own thoughts about it. In other words the author did an excellent job portraying the family. The old lady also used minor cursing but over all it was not a major stumbling block. The cursing is in there far fewer times than a lot of YA books I have read. There is some violence as there is a bully situation. I thought the author also handled that realistically. There was no sex scenes though there is some crushing going on.
If you are looking for a book for a child I think younger teens and preteens will enjoy it more than older teens. If you do family reads this book will be enjoyed by all,(sometimes older teens just need permission to like something they think they are too old for).

Oh well -- not worth reading further, & definitely can't use in classes --

I received this book in exchange for an HONEST REVIEW.

I found the book to be EXTREMELY boring. They always say you "catch" or lose your readers in the first ten pages and with this being a book for the ages where the attention span tends to be short...a slow start is considered death. In the case with this book...certain death. The story picks up a bit towards the end but it is "too little too late" and I am afraid most people would have quit on it by then. Plus...even with the improvement, there is not enough to make it worth recommending to anyone or looking for another book in the series (if this was intended to be a series).

One idea can be turned into a great book...but that one idea needs to be expanded and fleshed out not just dropped at the end of a book with nothing substantial before it.

I know how hard it is to finish writing a novel and I always give people credit for doing so...the problem now-a-days is that everyone thinks they are and that they don't need an editor or practice working their craft before publishing.

1 Star for the effort...

I received this book from Library Thing for my honest opinion...
The Legend of the Pumpkin Thief is a children's book, with a halloween themed story line, that I thought had great potential initially but when I started reading it I got very bored. It was one of those books that was easy to put down and took me way too long to get through. It wasn't until almost the end of the book where it was actually interesting. The author told the story of Nick, a kid who read mysteries and thought of himself as an amateur detective, and the neighborhood mystery of the missing pumpkins he was trying to solve. There were so many opportunities to paint a real picture with Nick, his sister, the bully and his gang, etc. but it never happened, until the climax. I think if the first half of the book was rewritten with as much imagination as the ending, then I would recommend it. Otherwise I would not recommend this book.

This book was received as an Early Reviewer selection.

Normally, this is the kind of book I would read voluntarily, as I am always looking for something to recommend to my middle school students. Unfortunately, this is not one that I will be passing along to them. Both the story and the writing are uneven throughout; it almost seemed as if two different authors collaborated to work together on it, but didn't talk to one another about what this book was supposed to be about and how it should be written. The story is listed as "horror," but all of the horror in the book is confined to about a dozen or so pages near the end. The remainder of the book is filled with one-dimensional characters, stilted dialogue, and building suspense that never quite builds to anything. It really is too bad, because the premise of the book had great potential. Perhaps a stronger editor would have helped.

This would probably appeal most to upper elementary school students. It’s fun that the protagonist, Nick, wants to be a detective, but there didn’t seem to be much sleuthing. It was more about preparing to attend a bully’s party than solving a mystery, and not much else happened until the last quarter of the book.

Nick, an aspiring detective and self-proclaimed protector of the neighborhood, has the world's most complicated Halloween ahead of him. A few things on his list: attempt to discover who stole all the pumpkins in the neighborhood, makes sense of an urban legend about a pumpkin headed spirit summoner, keep his annoying little sister out of the way, woo the cute girl on the bus, and avoid the school bully who has singled him out for a beating. This night is more than enough to keep a 12-year-old kid occupied on the spookiest night of the year. THE LEGEND OF THE PUMPKIN THIEF is an exciting look in to the minds and imaginations of young kinds on the brink of young adulthood and is a fun, if not anxious read.

Although many have attributed this book as a young adult novel, I would more rightly place it in the youth horror category along side R.L. Stein's Goosebumps. The themes are not quite dynamic enough to enthrall teenagers and other young adults, but kinds in the latter part of elementary school and junior high will find this read engaging and fun. Nick faces many of the trials of your typically American adolescent, and a few not so typical ones, which allows him to be relatable.

The pairing of young detective fiction and horror writing makes for a fun read that will be interesting for young kids looking for something besides flirting vampires for change.

I received a copy from LibraryThing for an honest review. This storyline was delightful. Nick is trying to discover what is happening before Halloween with all the pumpkins so he decides to investigate and recalls the story of the Pumpkin thief. Along the way, he has to interact with his bossy sister, the town bully while hot on the trail of the pumpkin thief. I enjoyed the story very much. I just wish it was a bit longer but overall, great read.

Thanking the author for providing a copy and giving me the opportunity to read and review The Legend of the Pumpkin Thief.

YA HORROR.
The Young Adult genre is sometimes hard to define. According to some it fits the 12-18 range, others claim it to be 15-20. In this case I'd opt for younger readers such as middle schoolers or even younger - depending on your child, of course. Parents should know best what their kids are capable of dealing with, but this story isn't all that horrifying.
The way I imagine how it'll do this delightful story full justice, is to make it a Halloween reading moment with the entire family!½

Nick, a lover of detective books, decides to discover the truth behind the vanishing pumpkins in his town. He crosses paths with the scary old woman who really isnt that scary, the bully who really isn't as tough as he thinks he is, and the legend of the pumpkin thief which may or may not be real. A short Halloween read for those desiring to get in the mood for the season. The characters are stereotypical and the plot is predictable.
However tweens might find this book appealing and perhaps relatable.

Received a copy for a review.

Nick thinks that an urban legend, the Pumpkin Thief, is stealing pumpkins from people's houses. If the pumpkins are stolen, they don't guard the house from spooky things on Halloween. Nick wants to stop the Pumpkin Thief, but will anyone believe him?

Honestly, this book was a bit of a bore to me. I enjoy kids' horror as long as it is well written and engaging, but this just wasn't engaging or interesting enough for me.

I was given a free copy for an honest review.

The beautiful cover image got my attention, so I knew I had to read this one. Bearing in mind that the story aims at young readers, the simple writing was easy to follow. The very descriptive language makes it easy to follow what happens and what Nick experiences, however sometimes it felt a bit repetitive and overly detailed, as if explaining things to an unknowing toddler instead of a child who can already read and imagine on its own. The characters were simple - the bully, the weird old lady, the unsure boy with heroic ambitions, but I guess that is still ok with a children's tale. The Pumpkin Thief was scary, but not too much, and of course the ending was a happy one (to prevent nightmares ;).

All in all a nice addition for kids who like creepy stories, especially around Halloween time, but not one to last - they will outgrow it soon.

(I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

The Legend of the Pumpkin Thief is a mildly entertaining story. It reads quickly, and has some truly scary scenes that middle schoolers would enjoy. The main character, Nick, notices that someone is stealing pumpkins from yards in his town? Who would do such a thing - his crazy old neighbor? The bully from his school? Nick, his friends, and his younger sister work together to find out who and why.

However, the writing is clunky, the characters are two-dimensional, and there isn't enough of a story to really make this a good book. The ending is not very satisfying because it is too perfect (the police thank him for his help and tell him he'd be a good officer, the bully is chased off, his younger brother now likes the protagonist's little sister, etc.). There is very little tension in the story, and that makes it a kind of boring read.

I was given a copy for review

I decided to read it out of curiosity , but i probably shouldn't have

the writing was nice and the story is okay as well , but just not for me . i found it boring and nothing in it was interesting .
i didn't feel like it was engaging enough , and the characters are very dull
you can't get into the story no matter how far you read

it is a kids book after all ...( i'm not sure i would even recommend it to kids)

Nick is a 17-year-old wannabe detective. Around Halloween, pumpkins in his neighborhood go missing and are found smashed. He begins researching a legend about a "pumpkin thief." He originally believes the thief to be Mrs. Needlewhitter, the elderly neighborhood grouch (who, in turn, thinks Nick is the pumpkin thief). Then, Nick suspects Lou, the neighborhood bully. On Halloween, Lou bullies Nick at an abandoned house, and they discover ghosts, who were taking the pumpkins.

For a 17 year old, Nick has very little character development. He doesn't stand up to bullies. His parents are absent. While this book is aimed at younger readers, the characters don't speak to me.½

This book takes a very long time to get interesting. I finally engaged in the last two chapters and was actually interested in the story. Prior to that the reading was pure drudgery. Its as if the writer endured writing the first several chapters to finally get to the part he wanted to write. The writing lacks any imagination and the characters are just flat. I don't see any middle grade child reading this for long. It is a real shame because the author could have done so much more with his concept.½

Nick thinks that an urban legend, the Pumpkin Thief, is stealing pumpkins from people's houses. If the pumpkins are stolen, they don't guard the house from spooky things on Halloween. Nick wants to stop the Pumpkin Thief, but will anyone believe him?

Honestly, this book was a bit of a bore to me. I enjoy kids' horror as long as it is well written and engaging, but this just wasn't engaging or interesting enough for me.

I was given a free copy for an honest review.

Great read for young adults, I would say the younger end of the age spectrum, looking for a mystery story as well as a scary story. The characters are definitely ones that young adults can relate. The main characters are as follows:
Nick: Main character who is 17 years old interested in being a detective when he gets older.
Samantha: Nick's younger sister
Jenny: Nick's "love" interest
Lou: The Neighborhood Bully
Norm, Ralph, and Byron: Lou's "groupies"
Mrs. Needlewhitter: Nick's old and cranky neighbor who has a dog baxter.

The storyline explores the legend of the Pumpkin thief and it says "...around Halloween, this evil creature, the Pumpkin Thief, a tall, green-bean-thin figure in a black suit and large, orange tie, with a massive orange pumpkin for a head, and carved-out eyes, nose, and jagged mouth,would sneak into a town of his choosing and snatch up the pumpkins at night. He'd collect as many as he could hold, then he'd carry them away to a secret location" and how Nick tries to be a detective and figure out if he has stricken in his town all while dealing with the everyday life of a 17 year old.