Betty Ren Wright (1927–2013)
Author of The Dollhouse Murders
About the Author
Betty Ren Wright was born in Wakefield, Michigan on June 15, 1927. She graduated from Downer University and was the chief editor for Western Publishing for over 30 years. During her lifetime, she wrote numerous children's books including A Ghost in the Family, A Ghost in the House, The Ghost of show more Mercy Manor, Too Many Secrets, A Ghost Comes Calling, The Dollhouse Murders, The Secret Window, and Getting Rid of Marjorie. She also wrote thirty-five picture books. Her short stories appeared in Redbook, Ladies' Home Journal, Young Miss, and numerous other magazines. She died on December 31, 2013 at the age of 86. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: via Goodreads
Series
Works by Betty Ren Wright
Rosie and the dance of the dinosaurs (Republished as: The midnight mystery) (1989) 79 copies, 1 review
MY NEW MOM & ME 2 copies
Johnny Go Round 2 copies
Scotty's Room 2 copies
Rabbit's Adventure 1 copy
La locomotora presumida 1 copy
the rabbit's adventure 1 copy
Willy Woo-Oo-00 1 copy
Death valley in '49 1 copy
Poppyseed 1 copy
The Joker 1 copy
The Mother Goose Madman 1 copy
The Yellow Cat 1 copy
Associated Works
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Stories to Be Read with the Door Locked (1975) — Contributor — 188 copies, 4 reviews
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Wright, Betty Ren
- Legal name
- Frederiksen, Betty Ren Wright
- Other names
- Ravena
- Birthdate
- 1927-05-15
- Date of death
- 2013-12-31
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Wakefield, Michigan, USA
- Places of residence
- Kenosha, Wisconsin, USA
- Place of death
- Racine, Wisconsin, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- Wisconsin, USA
Members
Discussions
Found: Childrens book -- sides of the room, one with door, one with window in Name that Book (February 2022)
Teen horror Ghost small mining town with shaft house in Name that Book (July 2013)
Reviews
Like R.L. Stine and Mary Downing Hahn, the late Betty Ren Wright weaves a tale sure to terrify any tween. But more than just delicious chills imbues The Dollhouse Murders.
Amy Treloar, nearly 13 years old, can’t help resent her 11-year-old brain-damaged sister Louann. Louann’s inappropriate behavior leaves Amy with few friends but lots of anger just under the surface until she finally explodes and runs off to her Aunt Claire, newly relocated from Chicago to the isolated family homestead show more outside of town.
Aunt Claire intervenes and gets Amy a few days of respite from demands too great for a 12-year-old. In the old house, Amy spies the long-forgotten dollhouse Claire had as a child, an exact replica of the old family home and a gift to Claire from her grandparents, Amy’s great-grandparents. [The orphaned 14-year-old Claire and her 5-year-old brother, Paul (Amy’s father), had gone to live with their grandparents when their parents died.] Aunt Claire had little use for such a gift when she got it as a 15th birthday present and doesn’t appreciate the dollhouse any better as an adult.
Soon Amy notices that the dolls in the dollhouse — replicas of the Treloar family of Claire’s teens, grandparents, Claire and young Paul — move when they’re alone and seem to be trying to send Amy a message. When Aunt Claire refuses to intercede, Amy begins sleuthing her family’s history. With the help of Louann, Amy discovers both the secret and an appreciation for a sister she’d seen as nothing but a burden until now.
The Dollhouse Murders, a slim mystery novel aimed at tweens, proves scarier than I would have thought, with an ending I never saw coming — and more touching. As the mother of two daughters with autism, I’m always cheered by literature that celebrates the dignity and capabilities of all.
Special thanks to Rachel Miller for recommending this excellent book to me. show less
Amy Treloar, nearly 13 years old, can’t help resent her 11-year-old brain-damaged sister Louann. Louann’s inappropriate behavior leaves Amy with few friends but lots of anger just under the surface until she finally explodes and runs off to her Aunt Claire, newly relocated from Chicago to the isolated family homestead show more outside of town.
Aunt Claire intervenes and gets Amy a few days of respite from demands too great for a 12-year-old. In the old house, Amy spies the long-forgotten dollhouse Claire had as a child, an exact replica of the old family home and a gift to Claire from her grandparents, Amy’s great-grandparents. [The orphaned 14-year-old Claire and her 5-year-old brother, Paul (Amy’s father), had gone to live with their grandparents when their parents died.] Aunt Claire had little use for such a gift when she got it as a 15th birthday present and doesn’t appreciate the dollhouse any better as an adult.
Soon Amy notices that the dolls in the dollhouse — replicas of the Treloar family of Claire’s teens, grandparents, Claire and young Paul — move when they’re alone and seem to be trying to send Amy a message. When Aunt Claire refuses to intercede, Amy begins sleuthing her family’s history. With the help of Louann, Amy discovers both the secret and an appreciation for a sister she’d seen as nothing but a burden until now.
The Dollhouse Murders, a slim mystery novel aimed at tweens, proves scarier than I would have thought, with an ending I never saw coming — and more touching. As the mother of two daughters with autism, I’m always cheered by literature that celebrates the dignity and capabilities of all.
Special thanks to Rachel Miller for recommending this excellent book to me. show less
One of a large family, Brenda sometimes longs for a place of her own where she can sit quietly and think. Her Aunt Rose, who rents a room in the house, and is therefore the only member of the family to have a room to herself, understands this desire and helps her to build a treehouse of her very own. Here Brenda experiences being alone for the first time, finding it peaceful and productive. She loves her family, and she loves being with them, but she finds she also likes being show more alone...
Although I sought out I Like Being Alone because I admire the artwork of illustrator Krystyna Stasiak, I was immediately struck by the title, and when I read it, but the psychological truth of the story. Although my own family, growing up, was considerably smaller than Brenda's, I still enjoyed getting away from them at times, and playing games of make-believe on my own, or just sitting and thinking. We had an old carriage house in our backyard that served very well as a retreat, and as a setting for games, whether communal or solitary. I have rarely seen a children's book which addresses the need to be alone, making Betty Ren Wright's book especially welcome. Nowadays, with helicopter parents and paranoia about stranger danger, it's difficult to imagine parents allowing children the freedom that I took for granted as a girl. I don't know that the text itself here was that accomplished, nor the artwork as appealing as I'd expected - there was a little too much orange in these paintings - but I liked the concept so much that I enjoyed it nevertheless. Recommended to young introverts, and to any child that longs for space and time of their own. show less
Although I sought out I Like Being Alone because I admire the artwork of illustrator Krystyna Stasiak, I was immediately struck by the title, and when I read it, but the psychological truth of the story. Although my own family, growing up, was considerably smaller than Brenda's, I still enjoyed getting away from them at times, and playing games of make-believe on my own, or just sitting and thinking. We had an old carriage house in our backyard that served very well as a retreat, and as a setting for games, whether communal or solitary. I have rarely seen a children's book which addresses the need to be alone, making Betty Ren Wright's book especially welcome. Nowadays, with helicopter parents and paranoia about stranger danger, it's difficult to imagine parents allowing children the freedom that I took for granted as a girl. I don't know that the text itself here was that accomplished, nor the artwork as appealing as I'd expected - there was a little too much orange in these paintings - but I liked the concept so much that I enjoyed it nevertheless. Recommended to young introverts, and to any child that longs for space and time of their own. show less
When you work at a library, it's not uncommon for discussion to center around books. So imagine, one day, my colleagues and I are discussing the juvenile classics of the 80s. (By the way, this conversation was birthed while browsing the pages of Paperback Crush by Gabrielle Moss.) From this conversation came a call to read The Dollhouse Murders. I said, sure, why not. Immediately I regretted this. I had far too many books already on my to-read pile. It was Man Booker season, and I really show more didn't have time for a juvenile mystery about a dollhouse. But I checked out the book anyway.
Fortunately, the copy my library had was the original 1983 hardback. Why was this a good thing? Because it transported me to a very different time. How different? Let's take a look at the novel's description from the flap:
That was the 1980s for you. Amy's sister didn't even have a name. (Fortunately, Betty Ren Wright was much more sensitive to Amy's sister than whomever wrote that copy at her publisher's. Amy's sister is named Louann by the way.) I cringed as I cracked the cover.
I admit my expectations were low. I can be a little bit of a book snob, and The Dollhouse Murders clearly wasn't going to be “my thing.” What more can I say? I was sucked right in. Taking into consideration the intended juvenile audience, The Dollhouse Murders presents an interesting cast of characters, as well as a story that is chilling and riveting. Sure, it's an absurd plot about dolls reenacting a murder, but it's well-written and compelling. It's a mildly scary mystery, not all that different from your average Stephen King story. Sure, for every part King there's one part Judy Blume, but I consider that an asset. For one thing, Blume is far better at creating believable, multi-dimensional characters than King ever was. No different here. Though The Dollhouse Murders was certainly little more than juvenile escapist lit, it was a very entertaining read. show less
Fortunately, the copy my library had was the original 1983 hardback. Why was this a good thing? Because it transported me to a very different time. How different? Let's take a look at the novel's description from the flap:
Each time Amy goes up to the attic in the middle of the night, the dollhouse is filled with a ghostly light and the dolls have moved from where she last left them. Even though Amy's terrified, she knows the dolls are trying to tell her something. But what? Could their movements be connected to the grisly murders that took place years before?
Amy becomes increasingly alarmed when her aunt Clare, who owns the dollhouse, grows angry at her questions.
In a spine-chilling climax, Amy and her retarded sister unravel the mystery and liberate their aunt from a terrible burden of guilt. [emphasis mine]
That was the 1980s for you. Amy's sister didn't even have a name. (Fortunately, Betty Ren Wright was much more sensitive to Amy's sister than whomever wrote that copy at her publisher's. Amy's sister is named Louann by the way.) I cringed as I cracked the cover.
I admit my expectations were low. I can be a little bit of a book snob, and The Dollhouse Murders clearly wasn't going to be “my thing.” What more can I say? I was sucked right in. Taking into consideration the intended juvenile audience, The Dollhouse Murders presents an interesting cast of characters, as well as a story that is chilling and riveting. Sure, it's an absurd plot about dolls reenacting a murder, but it's well-written and compelling. It's a mildly scary mystery, not all that different from your average Stephen King story. Sure, for every part King there's one part Judy Blume, but I consider that an asset. For one thing, Blume is far better at creating believable, multi-dimensional characters than King ever was. No different here. Though The Dollhouse Murders was certainly little more than juvenile escapist lit, it was a very entertaining read. show less
3.5 stars. The Dollhouse Murders is a cozy horror middle grade murder mystery! It deals with some pretty big issues: family dysfunction and having to care for a sibling that can’t take care of themselves, as well as resentment towards all of the parental attention going towards that sibling. While the story and mystery of what is happening is interesting, the ending felt too abrupt. I wanted a more in depth explanation!
If I had read this as a child, it would’ve put me off attics and show more dollhouses for life. It’s pretty scary for middle grade! Would recommend only for the very bravest of middle school teens. show less
If I had read this as a child, it would’ve put me off attics and show more dollhouses for life. It’s pretty scary for middle grade! Would recommend only for the very bravest of middle school teens. show less
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