zotty's review against another edition
2.0
A fun Halloween read, in all its simplicity. It's basically a Hawaii Scooby Doo episode without the Scooby Gang.
jselliot's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
One of my early childhood favorites. It was both educational and had a solid mystery thread for the age group, that - while it doesn't hold up quite as well to an adult reread - is still an enjoyable yarn.
Another reviewer made good points, though: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/dca37fd7-77c5-4030-a9b7-f3275db83255
Another reviewer made good points, though: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/dca37fd7-77c5-4030-a9b7-f3275db83255
mbatty's review
3.0
3.5 stars.
When I was eight or nine, I had a thing for mysteries (still do!), and Mom and Dad would occasionally give me permission to choose a book from Scholastic Book Club. Mystery of the Haunted Trail was one of those texts. Having been at my parents' house this week for the Christmas break, I found some of these old paperbacks we purchased from Scholastic in the late 1980s, and seeing that this one was set in Hawaii, where I lived for seven years, I wanted to give it a reread from a more worldly adult perspective.
I enjoyed the story, which moved quickly, but it's probably much more enjoyable for an elementary student just getting acquainted with chapter books. It was a bit predictable for me. The writer clearly wants to inform the reader about Hawaiian culture; each time a new Hawaiian term is introduced, it's italicized and explained. I couldn't decide (or remember) how this would have been absorbed by eight-year-old me. It was fine now because words like "lanai" and "luau" and "kupuna" just become part of your vocabulary if you call Hawaii home. Reading this one took me back to my stay at the school's beach cottage in Laie, where I vacationed alone for three or four days. One of my friends told me about the legend of the Night Marchers right before I stayed there, and another colleague warned about vagrants who might prowl around the premises, so between these two fears and the deafening crash of the surf, I slept fitfully. I remember leaving the light and sound of the t.v. on one night just to help me drift off to sleep.
I really enjoyed the cultural aspects of the story, but when set up against comparable ghost stories for that target age group (like The Dollhouse Murders and Wait Till Helen Comes), this one was less chilling or spooky.
When I was eight or nine, I had a thing for mysteries (still do!), and Mom and Dad would occasionally give me permission to choose a book from Scholastic Book Club. Mystery of the Haunted Trail was one of those texts. Having been at my parents' house this week for the Christmas break, I found some of these old paperbacks we purchased from Scholastic in the late 1980s, and seeing that this one was set in Hawaii, where I lived for seven years, I wanted to give it a reread from a more worldly adult perspective.
I enjoyed the story, which moved quickly, but it's probably much more enjoyable for an elementary student just getting acquainted with chapter books. It was a bit predictable for me. The writer clearly wants to inform the reader about Hawaiian culture; each time a new Hawaiian term is introduced, it's italicized and explained. I couldn't decide (or remember) how this would have been absorbed by eight-year-old me. It was fine now because words like "lanai" and "luau" and "kupuna" just become part of your vocabulary if you call Hawaii home. Reading this one took me back to my stay at the school's beach cottage in Laie, where I vacationed alone for three or four days. One of my friends told me about the legend of the Night Marchers right before I stayed there, and another colleague warned about vagrants who might prowl around the premises, so between these two fears and the deafening crash of the surf, I slept fitfully. I remember leaving the light and sound of the t.v. on one night just to help me drift off to sleep.
I really enjoyed the cultural aspects of the story, but when set up against comparable ghost stories for that target age group (like The Dollhouse Murders and Wait Till Helen Comes), this one was less chilling or spooky.
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