A huge, old house with secret tunnels, a cantankerous caretaker, and buried treasure is a dream-come-true for 13-year-old Thomas. The fact that it's reputedly haunted only adds to its appeal! As soon as his family moves in, Thomas senses something strange about the Civil War era house, which used to be a critical stop on the Underground Railroad. With the help of his father, he learns about the abolitionists and escaping slaves who kept the Underground Railroad running. While on his own, he explores the hidden passageways in and under the house, piecing clues together in an increasingly dangerous quest for the truth about the past. Newbery medalist Virginia Hamilton creates a heart-pounding adventure with this absorbing classic for older readers. (Ages 9 to 12)


From AudioFile
Thomas Small's world changes radically when he has to go north with his family to Ohio, where his father, a history professor, has rented a house that was formerly an important station on the Underground Railroad. Lynne Thigpen's deep, resonant voice recreates this journey and the faces along the way--from the young and hopeful Thomas, to the deeply troubled Mr. Pluto--until the house of Dies Drear finally gives up its mystery. Thigpen delivers the narrative slowly and methodically but she changes with her characterizations. She sings, screams and intones all the creatures of this classic ghost thriller. This Newbery Medal and National Book Award-winner is a must for any audio collection. P.E.F. An AUDIOFILE Earphones Award winner (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Review
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books "A hundred years ago, Dies Drear and two slaves he was hiding in his house, an Underground Railroad station in Ohio, had been murdered. The house, huge and isolated, was fascinating, Thomas thought, but he wasn't sure he was glad Papa had bought it--funny things kept happening, frightening things... The secret of the house is revealed in an exciting final sequence that maintains beautifully the mysterious and dramatic story of a black family caught in an atmosphere of fear and danger. Written with distinction, an imaginiative and imposing book."


Card catalog description
A black family tries to unravel the secrets of their new home which was once a stop on the Underground Railroad.


About the Author
Virginia Hamilton The recipient of nearly every major award and honor in her field, including the 1992 Hans Christian Anderson Award, Virgina Hamilton was the first African-American woman to be awarded the Newbery Medal, for M.C. Higgins The Great. Renowned as a storyteller, anthologist and lecturer as well as a novelist, Ms. Hamilton makes her home in Yellow Springs, Ohio.

ANNOTATION

A black family tries to unravel the secrets of their new home which was once a stop on the Underground Railroad.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The house held secrets, Thomas knew, even before he first saw it looming gray and massive on its ledge of rock. It had a century-oldlegend--two fugitive slaves had been killed by bounty hunters after leaving its passageways, and Dies Drear himself, the abolitionist who had made the house into a station on the Underground Railroad, had been murdered there. The ghosts of the three were said to walk its rooms...

FROM THE CRITICS

AudioFile - Paul E. Ferrari