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The Vampire Mystery (The Boxcar Children #120)

by Gertrude Chandler Warner, Robert L. Papp (Illustrator)

3.91 of 5 stars 3.91 · rating details · 57 ratings · 4 reviews

The Aldens meet Mr. Hudson, a local author who is best known for his novel about a vampire. But rumors of a real vampire are going around town - a vampire who haunts the graveyard behind Mr. Hudson's house! But since vampires don't exist, the children soon realize that someone must be trying to scare people away from Greenfield! Who brought the old legend back to life - an...more

Paperback, 102 pages

Published September 1st 2009 by Albert Whitman & Company

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Nov 09, 2011 Karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

I received an ebook copy of this book through NetGalley. (Thanks, NetGalley!) While I'm an academic librarian and rarely get to help children, I do work with quite a lot of education students who want recommendations on children's lit. Thus I try to sample it often.

The Boxcar Children was one of my favorite series, oh, twenty-plus years ago, when I was in elementary school and a little bit older. I had no idea that the series had kept going! When I read this one, I was pleased to find that Henry...more

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Oct 27, 2011 Susan rated it 4 of 5 stars

The Vampire Mystery (Boxcar Children Mysteries)
By Gertrude Chandler Warner

When young Benny Alden checks out the book “The Legend of the Vampire,” from the library, strange things begin to happen in the town of Greenfield.
Mr. Hudson, the author of the book and a friend of the childrens’ grandfather, needs to leave town for a few days and leaves his house in the care of Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny. Since he is trying to sell his house, the children offer to clean up the yard for him while he...more The Vampire Mystery (Boxcar Children Mysteries)
By Gertrude Chandler Warner

When young Benny Alden checks out the book “The Legend of the Vampire,” from the library, strange things begin to happen in the town of Greenfield.
Mr. Hudson, the author of the book and a friend of the childrens’ grandfather, needs to leave town for a few days and leaves his house in the care of Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny. Since he is trying to sell his house, the children offer to clean up the yard for him while he is gone. Unfortunately, someone has other plans for the house. Flowers are ripped from the garden, the words “Leave me to rest in peace or you will be sorry” is painted in red on the front porch. Something that looks like blood is being left on neighbor’s back porches, and a strange cloaked figure is seen at night in the cemetery behind the house.
Will the Alden children be able to solve the mystery in time? Is the legend of the Greenfield Vampire real, or is someone trying to scare Mr. Hudson and the children?

Exerpt from book:
“After they placed their order, Jessie pulled out her notebook and a pencil. When facing a mystery, the Aldens often found that writing all the facts and clues on paper helped them to see what was going on.
Jessie wrote “Vampire Legend” at the top of the page. “What do we know about the vampire legend?” she asked.
Henry took a long drink of his lemonade. “People around Greenfield used to tell stories about a vampire. We know that vampires are not real, so the people must have done it for fun or to scare each other.”
“And Mr. Hudson heard the stories when he was growing up. He turned them into a book.” Violet added.
“Then Mr. Hudson saw a vampire in the cemetery behind his house.” Benny leaned across the table, eyes wide.
“No, Benny. He saw something that concerned him. He didn’t actually see a vampire,” Henry added.
“Then what did he see?” asked Benny
“We’re not sure,” Henry said.“

True to the “Boxcar Children” series, this book keeps the reader interested and wondering what will happen next. I loved reading about Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny when I was a child; and now my children have that privilege as well. The story is well written and I love the determination of the Alden children to help out their new friend Mr. Hudson. I was captivated from beginning to end, and loved every clue that the children found along the way. This is a wonderful story for children of all ages. I can’t wait to read this again with my children.
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Oct 20, 2011 -k The Lady Critic rated it 2 of 5 stars

A cute, quick read that takes me back to early grade school.

Oh these Boxcar Children books take me back. I don’t know if the books have necessarily become shorter or I’ve just become a faster reader, but I remember it taking all afternoon to read one of these novels when I was little. I sped through this novel in less than a half hour and thought that I could have definitely read it faster if I so wanted.

Reading these novels years later, it’s nice to see that while the writer has taken the cha...more

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Jul 08, 2012 Brooke rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery

I REALLY wish there'd been a real vampire! >:(

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May 18, 2013 Kyle Brackman rated it 5 of 5 stars

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About Gertrude Chandler Warner

Gertrude Chandler Warner was born in Putnam, Connecticut, on April 16, 1890, to Edgar and Jane Warner. Her family included a sister, Frances, and a brother, John. From the age of five, she dreamed of becoming an author. She wrote stories for her Grandfather Carpenter, and each Christmas she gave him one of these stories as a gift. Today, Ms. Warner is best remembered as the author of THE BOXCAR CH...more Gertrude Chandler Warner was born in Putnam, Connecticut, on April 16, 1890, to Edgar and Jane Warner. Her family included a sister, Frances, and a brother, John. From the age of five, she dreamed of becoming an author. She wrote stories for her Grandfather Carpenter, and each Christmas she gave him one of these stories as a gift. Today, Ms. Warner is best remembered as the author of THE BOXCAR CHILDREN MYSTERIES.

As a child, Gertrude enjoyed many of the things that girls enjoy today. She loved furnishing a dollhouse with handmade furniture and she liked to read. Her favorite book was ALICE IN WONDERLAND. Often on Sundays after church, Gertrude enjoyed trips to visit her grandparents' farm. Along the way, she and Frances would stop to pick the wildflowers they both loved. Gertrude's favorite flower was the violet.

Her family was a very musical one. They were able to have a family orchestra, and Gertrude enjoyed playing the cello. Her father had brought her one from New York ---a cello, a bow, a case and an instruction book. All together, he paid $14. Later, as an adult, she began playing the pipe organ and sometimes substituted for the church organist.

Due to ill health, Ms. Warner never finished high school. She left in the middle of her second year and studied with a tutor. Then, in 1918, when teachers were called to serve in World War I, the school board asked her to teach first grade. She had forty children in the morning and forty more in the afternoon. Ms. Warner wrote, "I was asked or begged to take this job because I taught Sunday School. But believe me, day school is nothing like Sunday School, and I sure learned by doing --- I taught in that same room for 32 years, retiring at 60 to have more time to write." Eventually, Ms. Warner attended Yale, where she took several teacher training courses.

Once when she was sick and had to stay home from teaching, she thought up the story about the Boxcar Children. It was inspired by her childhood dreams. As a child, she had spent hours watching the trains go by near her family's home. Sometimes she could look through the window of a caboose and see a small stove, a little table, cracked cups with no saucers, and a tin coffee pot boiling away on the stove. The sight had fascinated her and made her dream about how much fun it would be to live and keep house in a boxcar or caboose. She read the story to her classes and rewrote it many times so the words were easy to understand. Some of her pupils spoke other languages at home and were just learning English. THE BOXCAR CHILDREN gave them a fun story that was easy to read.

Ms. Warner once wrote for her fans, "Perhaps you know that the original BOXCAR CHILDREN. . . raised a storm of protest from librarians who thought the children were having too good a time without any parental control! That is exactly why children like it! Most of my own childhood exploits, such as living in a freight car, received very little cooperation from my parents."

Though the story of THE BOXCAR CHILDREN went through some changes after it was first written, the version that we are familiar with today was originally published in 1942 by Scott Foresman. Today, Albert Whitman & Company publishes this first classic story as well as the next eighteen Alden children adventures that were written by Ms. Warner.

Gertrude Chandler Warner died in 1979 at the age of 89 after a full life as a teacher, author, and volunteer for the American Red Cross and other charitable organizations. After her death, Albert Whitman & Company continued to receive mail from children across the country asking for more adventures about Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny Alden. In 1991, Albert Whitman added to THE BOXCAR CHILDREN MYSTERIES so that today's children can enjoy many more adventures about this independent and caring group of children.(less)

More about Gertrude Chandler Warner...

Books by Gertrude Chandler Warner

The Boxcar Children (The Boxcar Children, #1)

The Boxcar Children (The Boxcar Children, #1-4)

Surprise Island (The Boxcar Children, #2)

The Yellow House Mystery (The Boxcar Children, #3)

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The Vampire Mystery (The Boxcar Children #120)

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