The House of Dies Drear

I know this is considered a classic; however, I felt the story was somewhat lacking. An African American family relocates from the deep south to Ohio, to the former home of an abolitionist and underground railroad conductor. Some of the story was compelling as far as the home with all it's secrets were concerned but the conflict felt too contrived. The author tried to present the views of the teenage or preteen protagonist but missed the mark to me. Interesting from the historical fiction stand point.

Thomas knows there is something odd about his new home. It was a major player in the underground railroad back in the civil war, and is honeycombed with hideyholes and passages. But it isn't just that--he can tell that there is more of a long-ended story lurking behind every shadow. Now, scary things are happening in the house and frightening him and his family, and he must take the time to figure out just what is going on before something really bad happens.

I finished reading The House of Dies Drear yesterday. It is one of my favorite books.

However, I made the mistake of skimming some of the negative reviews online and am now not in the proper mindframe to be of any use here. I want to take these silly people by the collars and shake show more them, screaming, 'How can you say there is not enough detail in this book? What do you want, a play by play description of Thomas's haircut?!' But I won't. And not only because it is immature and I don't know them.

I won't, because they are wrong. Yes, it is my opinion and I am completely entitled to it as they are to theirs. It just also happens to be my opinion that they are stupid and wrong. Or at least wrong. Intelligence doesn't necessarily have anything to do with it.

But it, aside from breaking my mood, got me thinking. How do we determine that we like a book? Yes, it is, for most people, reader oriented. They just go, 'Oh hey, I like that.' or 'Oh, hey. This sucks. I'm going to go read Twilight again.'

Sorry. Being a jerk.

But seriously, how do we determine it?

I like this book because it is about people. One of the reviews said that they were unrealistic, borderline fantastic. I think that, while yes, I don't believe there are many Mr. Plutos out there, I believe that there are many people that have the potential to behave as he did in such a situation. People are stubborn and pigheaded and inclined to lose perspective when allowing themselves to obsess. And Thomas? What is so unusual about Thomas? He's a kid--he's kind of petulant, curious and unsure of himself. He loves his family and doesn't know what to think about where he is now. He's allowed to be a little off-center.

These are people, but not just people. They are characters in a book, a short one. I will never say this book is one of the greatest of all time, but I will say it's pretty damn good. Hamilton paints her pictures of this possibly haunted house with care to include all of the details that make it no more than an actual house in the day light.

Argh. I'm racking my brain to explain this, but I cannot. The plot isn't astounding, it is, actually, quite straightforward. Thomas's house might be haunted and the creepy caretaker knows more than he lets on. There are secret passages; there might be treasure. Thomas is a boy with two baby brothers and knack for whittling.

I don't know.

I'm still somewhat frustrated. I cannot get beyond the 'I thinks' right now, and will thusly leave it at that.

But this will always be a favorite. show less

This book is as old as I am. Reading it as an adult, I can see some of the flaws. But as a child, I think I would have found it to be magical.

This is a mystery that takes interesting twists and turns as a young boy, Thomas Small, moves into a historic home in Ohio that was once part of the Underground Railroad. Strange things start happening in the home which is said to be haunted. The author fills this book with surprising twists as turns as the story unfolds.

First, let me start by saying, "Get a new cover already!" Don't let the cover turn you off. When a father takes a teaching position in a new town, the family moves in to a creepy old house with a haunted past - and present.

This is a good, exciting adventure story geared towards children/young adults. Nonetheless, the it has a somber backdrop - that of slavery and the Underground Railroad. The book concerns a young family that moves into an old house, and is told primarily from the perspective of Thomas, the 13 year-old son. The house is known to be a former station on the Underground Railroad, and is supposedly haunted by slaves caught and killed on their journey. Strange things begin happening immediately, apparently at the hands of the fearsome old caretaker. There are a few twists before a very satisfying ending.

This book is a favorite from my childhood. The plot is about a young boy and his family moving to a new state and into a huge but old house. Thomas soon learns sout the history of the house. The house belonged to an abolitionist during the time of slavery and the house was an intricate part of the underground railroad. Thomas learns about the history of the house and hears tales of the house being haunted. Throughout the bbok Thomas finds tunnels, secret passages, and more secrets about various char acters in the book. This book is a great read for reading levels on the 5th grade and up. This book is a great read by itslef but it would be great in addition to a black history lesson or a unit on the civil war. Info on the author and book show more can be found at viriginiahamilton.com. show less