Gibson, M., Burns, P., & Schrader, D. (2009). The other side: a teen’s guide to ghost hunting and the paranormal. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
ISBN-13: 978-0-547-25829-4
Summary
This guide book introduces teens to everything to do with ghost hunting and the paranormal world. It is written by author Marley Gibson with the help of truTV’s television show Haunting Evidence, Patrick Burns, and Dave Schrader of Darkness Radio, a paranormal radio station. After a chapter introducing ghost hunting, there are fourteen chapters that cover such topics as “A Quick History of Ghost Hunting,” “Different Types of Hauntings,” “Equipment Used in Investigations,” “Electronic Voice Phenomena or EVP,” “The Use of Psychics and Mediums,” “Safe Hex: Protection for You and Your Team,” and “A Healthy Dose of Skepticism.” The book concludes with not only a conclusion chapter, but also a sample interview questionnaire amateur ghost hunters might use to interview clients, and a glossary of terminology.
Critical Evaluation
The Other Side: A Teen’s Guide to Ghost Hunting and the Paranormal presents a teen audience with a wide scope of information about everything they need to know to be ghost hunters. The style of writing is chatty and often entertaining: “Who are we and why should you listen to us? Because we told you to! LOL!” This tone of writing reaches teens on their level. The beginning of the book does well to present teens with warnings before they even get started. They are told to be prepared, to avoid trespassing on others’ property, and encouraged to obtain permission before ghost hunting. Furthermore, the writers emphasize that ghost hunting is a hobby: “Paranormal investigation is a true labor of love and a personal journey for attempting to understand the unexplained. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not something that one seeks out as a vocation.” The information in each chapter is clearly presented and concisely written with plenty of examples. Many pages have photographs and other illustrations, though these are all in black and white. Color photographs would make it even better. Text is written in paragraphs often divided by subtitles. The chapter on Safe Hex offers readers with a list of Christian, Wiccan and nontraditional prayers and methods to protect them during investigations. In this way, no one religious belief is excluded. This book is a good beginner’s guide for a growing hobby.
Reader’s Annotation
This guide to ghost hunting gives teens all the information they need to help them seek out the paranormal. For teens interested in ghost hunting as a hobby, they can look no further.
Author Information
Marley Gibson, the main author, has been writing ever since she was a small child. She had an expansive collection of stuffed animals and created an entire imaginary world of them, which she called “Animaltown.” She would write stories about their families and lives and would auction the stories off to family members for a quarter. She was inspired to write her first short novel as a teenager when she read the First Love books by Silhouette. In the summer between ninth and tenth grade, she discovered she had cancer in her leg. During the time she was sick and recovering, her imagination kept working.
After a series of jobs, she decided she had to seriously choose a career in January, 2001. Gibson thought about either cooking school or writing, and ultimately chose to be an author. She has written two stories for the Sorority 101 series, writing as Kate Harmon. Then, in November 2007, she sold the first of her Ghost Huntress series. In addition to writing young adult fiction, she also writes nonfiction such as The Other Side: A Teen’s Guide to Ghost Hunting and the Paranormal.
Marley Gibson currently lives in Boston and recently married co-author Patrick Burns on November 11, 2011 (yes, 11/11/11). She enjoys promoting her books, speaking, visiting libraries and schools, doing events, and ghost hunting. She loves cooking, traveling and discovering food in new places, and trying out recipes. She drinks too much Diet Coke and spends too much time surfing the Internet.
To contact Marley Gibson and find more information, please visit her website:
Genre
Young adult
Nonfiction
Paranormal
Curriculum Ties
N/A
Book Talking Ideas
Do you believe in ghosts? What is paranormal activity?
Reading Level/ Interest Age
Geared to teens grades 7 and up
Challenge Issues
N/A
Why did I include this title?
I love ghost hunting shows. As I was reading reviews for this book, I realized that they were right: there are not many ghost hunting books geared to a teenage audience. I appreciate how this book takes the subject matter seriously. Furthermore, I learned so much! I didn’t know there was a difference between ghosts and spirits.
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