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30th out of 85 books
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148 voters
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Ghost Boy
by
Iain Lawrence (Goodreads Author)
Harold Kline is an albino—an outcast. Folks stare and taunt, calling him Ghost Boy. It’s been that way for all of his 14 years. So when the circus comes to town, Harold runs off to join it.
Full of colorful performers, the circus seems like the answer to Harold’s loneliness. He’s eager to meet the Cannibal King, a sideshow attraction who’s an albino, too. He’s touched that...more
Full of colorful performers, the circus seems like the answer to Harold’s loneliness. He’s eager to meet the Cannibal King, a sideshow attraction who’s an albino, too. He’s touched that...more
Mass Market Paperback, 352 pages
Published
May 14th 2002
by Laurel Leaf
(first published 2000)
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Ghost Boy
by Iain Lawrence
352 pages
Laurel Leaf
044041668X
In Ghost Boy, everyone makes fun of Harold because he is albino so Harold decides to leave the town to find people who won’t make fun of him. Harold decides to join a circus that he travels with all over the place and he likes it at the circus because no one makes fun of him for being different. He gets a job at the circus cleaning up elephant pens but notices that no one in the circus does tricks/stunts using ...more
by Iain Lawrence
352 pages
Laurel Leaf
044041668X
In Ghost Boy, everyone makes fun of Harold because he is albino so Harold decides to leave the town to find people who won’t make fun of him. Harold decides to join a circus that he travels with all over the place and he likes it at the circus because no one makes fun of him for being different. He gets a job at the circus cleaning up elephant pens but notices that no one in the circus does tricks/stunts using ...more
I picked this one up because I recently wrote a story featuring a boy about this protagonist's age who also has albinism, and I was interested to see how the author handles it. (Incidentally, both this and the last book I read had "ghost" in the title without referring to an actual ghost.)
As far as how albinism was handled, I think I can best say, "frequently." Harold - identified for the first few pages as "the Ghost," based on a nickname bullies gave...more
As far as how albinism was handled, I think I can best say, "frequently." Harold - identified for the first few pages as "the Ghost," based on a nickname bullies gave...more
view all 13 comments
I hate to say it, but the first thing that even drew me to this book is the cover. It reminded me a great deal a of guy I went to college with who was also an albino. However, after reading the book blurb about the content, I was even more drawn to it since it reminded me a little bit of Water for Elephants. Having completed this novel, I will say it certainly does carry many similar strains to WFE in both theme, content, and characters. So, if you appreciated WFE and want to continue on a like ...more
Harold, mercilessly teased for his albinism, runs away from home and travels with the circus.
I read this when I was a kid. At the time I loved it... mostly because it exposed me to the intriguing and tragic circus culture of the early to mid 1900s. Also, I read this book at a time in my childhood when I was being affected by racism fairly often, so it was refreshing to read the account of a boy who is treated as a second-class citizen because of his skin.
I read this when I was a kid. At the time I loved it... mostly because it exposed me to the intriguing and tragic circus culture of the early to mid 1900s. Also, I read this book at a time in my childhood when I was being affected by racism fairly often, so it was refreshing to read the account of a boy who is treated as a second-class citizen because of his skin.
I wanted it to be great. With a setting of sideshow circus freaks how could it miss? I was hoping for a young adult version of 'Water for Elephants' Instead, it is a slow story of a young albino boy as he joins the circus. I guess I liked the redemption at the end as he returns home, but there was none of the charm or showmanship I was hoping for in a novel set in the circus. The writing was flat, the characters unlikeable, the themes muddy and uninspiring. Just one star from me on this one.
I felt guilty for not enjoying this novel more, since it was one of those type of award-winning books that are farmed out to high schoolers all over the country. I found the characters one-dimensional, the protagonist unlikeable and the story implausible. I did learn more about albinism and was interested enough to research the condition on my own.
Bethany
added it
I wasn't expecting much when I started this, but I finished it very quickly and was pleasantly surprised. Ghost Boy was a strange mix of intrigue and sadness, but definitely worth reading. I'm glad I read something a little different than usual.
I enjoyed the storyline, the characters, and the conflicts of this story. I also found it a bit disturbing - I'm not sure why. The idea of elephants playing baseball was charming, but the story was kind of sad too.
Harold Kline is an albino who has been ridiculed, taunted, and called a freak all his life. He runs away from home and joins the circus, where he befriends other "freaks" and teaches the elephants to play baseball.
A coming of age and overcoming fears. My grandson got me to reading this and it is good though a little sad.
A truly well written book, appropriate for younger readers/teens with an insatiable appetite for reading.
It was a great book explaining that it's hard to be different, but it takes forever to get to the point.
This book was horrible and so mind-numbingly boring, it hurt to read. I wonder how the author stayed awake reading this book.
Elephants playing baseball? Why not? Dumbo was a flying elephant. I thought it was a great book.
This book seamed really interesting on all the reviews, but I think it was... strange.
Really sad, but good.
Lindsay Jane
added it
What a great book!
This book was the best! It was hard for me to get into at first. It wasn't ever one of those books that I thought "Oh I can't wait to read more!" But whenever I started reading it during my free time, I got really into it! Harold the main character seems very real to me. He has real feelings of insecurity, but in the end, he is confident. I will warn you, you WILL cry if you read this book. So you may not want to read it in a public place.
I read the first few pages of this novel and I just couldn't get into it. There was an albino and a train and . . . . . no matter how many times I tried - this book just didn't do it for me.
The language here is rich and the characters are compelling. Harold is complex and his coming of age story is satisfying. I hate circus stories, though because you always know something bad is going to happen with those animals. It is an easy tension.
This is one of the strangest books I have ever read, I'm not sure if that is what made me love it so much, but I do. You should read it.
Great youth lit, coming-of-age novel. Young man comes to terms with his differences, falls in love, feels acceptance.
It was really hard to get into. And pretty dull. And of course, I was nearly in tears at the end.
Excellent Young Teen book. Deals with physical prejudice and accepting yourself as you are.
This story is packed with valuable moral lessons, but I didn't find it thrilling.
This book is sweet and touching, and it's not likely I'll ever forget it
Really hard to get through. Very dull.
I LOVE IT1
Ghost Boy- Iain Lawrence (Audio book)
The narrator of this was also very annoying, an old man that sounded sort of like that coon dog from Looney Toons...this book was a young adult/kid? novel about a young teen albino boy who was shy and meek and only had a dog for a friend-the rest of his family was either dead/missing and he didn't seem to care much about his remaining mother who didn't seem like her old self since the family "broke".
So, he gets pulled into being inter...more
The narrator of this was also very annoying, an old man that sounded sort of like that coon dog from Looney Toons...this book was a young adult/kid? novel about a young teen albino boy who was shy and meek and only had a dog for a friend-the rest of his family was either dead/missing and he didn't seem to care much about his remaining mother who didn't seem like her old self since the family "broke".
So, he gets pulled into being inter...more
Noramof
marked it as to-read
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