- Ghost Buddy, by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver Scholastic Books, 170 pages $6.99.
THE last thing Hoover Porterhouse tells Billy Broccoli not to do is trip.
The first thing Billy Broccoli does when he gets to school is trip. Unfortunately for Billy, it's his first day at a new school, so tripping is a particularly embarrassing event. Luckily for 11-year-old Billy, who is not the coolest new kid on the block, he has a teenaged mentor determined to help him fit in. Hoover Porterhouse is 14, and is driven to teach Billy everything he knows about being cool, such as don't trip on your first day of school.
But Billy proves to be a challenge for "the Hoove" (as he likes to call himself). It's partly because Billy is a tough case (he likes to wear his pants high up on his waist and shirts with fart humour). And it's partly because the Hoove can't resist making mischief. But there's a reason the Hoove has to succeed. If he doesn't, he is doomed to walk the earth for eternity. It's important to mention here that Hoover Porterhouse is a ghost.
And although it may sound ominous, this quirky turn in the story that threatens to keep Hoover from graduating to the next level of earth or heaven or something (it is never specified), is presented in an upbeat and age-appropriate way for the intended audience of eight-to 12-year-olds.
Complicating the situation is the fact that Hoover is not allowed to travel outside the boundaries of his family's estate upon which Billy's new house happens to sit. This keeps Hoover from realizing a longheld dream to visit every baseball field in America, unless he can finally pass all of his ghostly subjects, such as Haunting Skills and Invisibility. Unfortunately for the Hoove, he has been failing two important subjects for the past 99 years: Helping Others and Responsibility. And Billy is his last chance to pass.
Ghost Buddy follows a somewhat predictable series of embarrassing steps for its lead character: run-ins with a bully, squabbles with a sibling, and an unrequited crush. But there is enough humorous dialogue and description to make the story feel fresh.
The book finishes with an open-ended resolution that is somewhat satisfying, but leaves many questions unanswered. Perhaps it is a set-up for a sequel? Co-written by Henry Winkler, Ghost Buddy shows no signs of the actor's former Fonzie character from Happy Days. It is a simple, entertaining (and not at all scary) tale about a young boy and his new ghost buddy.
