Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.

Start by marking “The Ghost Collector” as Want to Read:

Other editions

Enlarge cover

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Open Preview

The Ghost Collector

Allison Mills

3.90 · Rating details · 337 ratings · 94 reviews

Ghosts aren’t meant to stick around forever…

Shelly and her grandmother catch ghosts. In their hair.

Just like all the women in their family, they can see souls who haven’t transitioned yet; it’s their job to help the ghosts along their journey. When Shelly’s mom dies suddenly, Shelly’s relationship to ghosts—and death—changes. Instead of helping spirits move on, Shelly star ...more

Get A Copy

Hardcover, 192 pages

Published September 10th 2019 by Annick Press

More Details... Edit Details

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Reader Q&A

To ask other readers questions about The Ghost Collector, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Operation Frog Effect by Sarah Lynn Scheerger

Aru Shah and the Song of Death by Roshani Chokshi

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart

Middle Grade Novels of 2019

477 books — 530 voters

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Ghost Stories

1,309 books — 1,892 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

Showing 1-30

Average rating 3.90 ·

Rating details

· 337 ratings · 94 reviews

More filters

Sort order

Start your review of The Ghost Collector

Sep 21, 2020 Mel (Epic Reading) rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc-netgalley

This middle grade book handles death in an elegant, yet realistic way. I love how the lead gal feels everything is unfair. Just like most kids (and let’s face it us adults too) feel when bad things happen. To complicate things further our lead teen is able to see ghosts and 'collect' them just like her Mother and Grandmother (who lives with them). Therefore when an important person in her life dies she looks and hopes for their ghost to come to her.

Death
“Nobody wants to admit that death is some This middle grade book handles death in an elegant, yet realistic way. I love how the lead gal feels everything is unfair. Just like most kids (and let’s face it us adults too) feel when bad things happen. To complicate things further our lead teen is able to see ghosts and 'collect' them just like her Mother and Grandmother (who lives with them). Therefore when an important person in her life dies she looks and hopes for their ghost to come to her.

Death
“Nobody wants to admit that death is something that eventually happens to everyone.”
In our world today, or at least in North America, we do not talk enough about death. There is a desire to avoid it, pretend it doesn't happen, or bury it in the ground never to be discussed again. It's silly when you think about it as the one thing we all have in common, if nothing else, is that we die. But due to the great unknown (and fear that comes from that) we tend to gloss over death and expect everyone to keep their feelings quietly to themselves. This is never a good option when it comes to mental health.
I like that The Ghost Collector promotes discussion about death and how it feels when someone important dies. How do we 'move on' and close the gap they've left? What can give us closure or resolution to the trauma of someone dying (regardless of how they die)?

Genuine Feelings
I'm 37 today and you might think that I can't remember being a teen; but I most certainly do. As I have no children today and my teen years were a bit traumatic (although whose weren't?!) I have very vivid memories of my emotions at the time. One of the biggest things that I remember thinking as a child was that everything is unfair (for the record I still believe this to be true). Allison Mills does an excellent job of portraying this concept and shows it well in our leading gal. There is an attempt to sweep the death under the rug and so when she finally has an outburst with an adult about it her primary frustration is how unfair it is (and that she feels neglected). The emotions of our leading gal felt real to me; and even had me nearly in tears at one point (high praise as I'm not a crier).

Ghosts
The thing to perhaps be aware of here for some parents is that there is a prevalence of ghosts in The Ghost Collector. Mills presents them as obviously real and previously (very) human in nature. There isn't a lot of poltergeist or mean ghosts here; more animals, children, and a couple of significant humans. I personally love the ghost repertoire presented as it's (generally) in a positive light. The ghosts aren't there to be a nuisance or scare anyone; they have just lost their way and need help finding it.

Overall
By the end of the story we see our leading teen go through a transformation; both physically and mentally. I love the symbolism given to the cutting of her hair. This is something I did at 19 in order to try and restart my adult life on a better, less dangerous path. Mills uses the physical cutting of our gal's hair as a way to make that change apparent and tangible to the younger readers.
I also enjoyed the musical references like The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, etc. This melancholy 70-80's music is the perfect sort of backdrop to the confusion, grief, and discomfort of being a teenager. Overall Mills does a good job of creating a space to talk about death, ensuring our leading teen grows and learns over the course of the novel, and does so without any romantic entanglements!

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review. ...more

flag 18 likes · Like · see review

Aug 11, 2019 Sarah Lillian Books rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

What a heartfelt middle grade book about grief, belief, death, and moving on. This is one of those books that anyone at any age can read it and get something out it, which I admire Mills for doing. There are so many wonderful hard lessons for anyone to learn. For example, life goes on after experiencing death of a loved one, and we are all people, even our parents. I, myself, have learned recently that your parents are just people and not perfect, superheroes as you thought as a kid. I so relate ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Sep 23, 2019 Sammie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley-2019

You can read my full review on my blog, The Writerly Way, here.

Many thanks to Annick Press and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I don’t read as many works inspired by American Indian or First Nations cultures as I’d like, so when I saw this, I jumped on it immediately. Mid-grade has been so hit or miss for me lately, because I’ve found a lot of it just ends up being too young for me. What?! I hear you say. You, who’s nearly 30, are now too old for mid-grade?! You can read my full review on my blog, The Writerly Way, here.

Many thanks to Annick Press and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

I don’t read as many works inspired by American Indian or First Nations cultures as I’d like, so when I saw this, I jumped on it immediately. Mid-grade has been so hit or miss for me lately, because I’ve found a lot of it just ends up being too young for me. What?! I hear you say. You, who’s nearly 30, are now too old for mid-grade?! I know. Color me shocked, too. Who would’ve guessed? With this book, though, I was pleasantly surprised, because it did have the sort of depth I look for in books.

The Ghost Collector is the heartbreaking tale of a daughter waiting for her mother’s spirit to come back, and also the lively, funny story of all the other spirits she meets along the way.

I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but I loved the idea of it, and I was surprised just how much I ended up enjoying it. I’ve been looking for some books for my own mid-grade reader, and this one ticked all the boxes for me. I would definitely recommend it for any mid-grade readers who are dealing with grief and loss themselves.

My Thoughts:

- I appreciated how this book normalizes Cree culture, rather than presenting it as “exotic” or “other.” I don’t often think authors intend to do this, but I do notice that it happens a lot. Shelly is proud of her Cree heritage, but it isn’t the defining feature about her. She’s not reduced to being “this Cree character.” Nor is she held as a sort of comparison for all these other non-Cree characters. This is certainly no dissertation about Cree culture, but there are little aspects of the culture that were slipped in that I thought would serve as a great place to start the conversation with mid-grade readers on other cultures, particularly First Nations.

- Hidden in the arguments between Shelly’s mother and grandmother over whether she should be involved in ghosts seems to be this really poignant implication about culture being passed down through the generations. Shelly’s mother grew up with ghosts, and for whatever reason, as an adult, she turned her back on that lifestyle. But Shelly’s grandmother wants to teach Shelly about the ghosts—something that’s been directly passed down through their Cree lineage and is a unique talent most people don’t have. It’s not in-your-face obvious, but I thought it was really interesting how it spoke to this generational culture divide that often happens with any sort of minority (and any sort of immigrant, even) where it’s a hard choice between assimilating to the society they live in and wanting to retain part of their culture. This is such an important topic faced by so many people in today’s world, and yet often never discussed, and while the author doesn’t go in depth on the subject, she does a great job of making it matter in even little everyday things.

- That moment when someone has to explain to the protagonist what a tape deck is, and her mother is talking about recording songs off the radio when she was young, and wow, you’ve just realized how old you are. The protagonist of this story, I am not. Not anymore! Which actually makes this almost more interesting to me, because it’s really easy to see my own daughter as the protagonist, and it makes the events of this story all the more impactful from an entirely different (and maybe slightly unexpected) angle. It was super easy for me to straddle both sides of this: from a mother, terrified of leaving her daughter behind, and as a daughter, who would have been devastated if her mother had died at that age.

- While there are certainly a lot of heavy moments in this book, it isn’t all dark, and there were so many fun personalities to enjoy. Because what’s a book without its characters? Shelley’s grandmother was definitely a highlight for me, because she was proud and stubborn but also funny and doing her best. But a lot of the characters in this book are ghosts, and I loved them just as much.

- The ghosts themselves were for sure a highlight for me in this book, because they all had such personality! Shelly meets a lot of ghosts in her travels. As you do. Some are ready to move on, and some not so much. There was just such a variety with them, and I loved meeting a whole range of ghosts and seeing their circumstances. The best part: as per the Cree worldview, humans aren’t the only creatures that become ghosts, which means plenty of encounters with formerly fuzzy critter spirits, too.

- This book hurt my feels in all the right ways, because while it is about death and grief, it’s also about life and acceptance. Though it deals with death, it doesn’t wax philosophical about grief and losing someone. Instead, the power is in the subtle ways it portrays the grieving process. It’s in the quiet moments after death, absorbing it, dying inside while you try to carry on. It’s in the way you’re forced to return to everyday life like nothing’s changed, even though everything has. It’s the image of a little girl sitting on her mother’s bed, waiting, because she’s so dang certain that her mother’s ghost will come for her. Just oof. The way this book tackles grief is so accessible, especially for mid-grade readers, in my opinion, because it doesn’t just wallow in it, but shows the little ways grief can sneak up on a person.

- While I wouldn’t say this is a typical coming of age story, necessarily, Shelly does manage to find herself, and I really enjoyed the growth. Shelly’s just trying to figure out what the heck it means to be Shelly without losing herself to grief. I’m always up for a good character arc, and I really enjoyed this one—partly because it was so stinking relatable, even at my age, and partly because of the journey Shelly takes. It’s not quite a normal means of finding one’s self. Probably because ghosts are involved. But as an adult, it’s easy to start to see the not-so-great choices, the semi-spiraling emotions, and knowing that, eventually, things are going to have to give.

Sticking Points:

- I would’ve personally liked to see more of the ghosts, since some of their arcs felt a bit incomplete. I’m the sort that likes things to feel done when it ends, but there were still questions I had about some of the ghosts and what became of them, etc. There was also a part at the end that I didn’t quiet understand why something happened, either. It’s such a little nitpicky thing, but by the time I finished the book, I still just kept wondering, like, “What ever happened to so-and-so?” ...more

flag 4 likes · Like · see review

Nov 08, 2020 Erin rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-own

At 186 pages, this middle grade novel featuring sixth grader, Shelly and her ghost hunting Grandma kept me quite enthralled.

If you carry your ghosts in your hair, you can cut them off when you don't need them anymore. Otherwise, ghosts cling to your skin, dig their fingers in under your ribs, and stay with you long, long after you want them gone.

Although Shelly's mother disagrees with Shelly's grandma taking her daughter along on these ghost experiences, Shelly is learning what all the Cree W ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Nov 27, 2020 serena rated it really liked it

Shelves: middle-grade

4 ⭐️

this was a sweet and poignant book about grief that’s honestly everyone of all ages should read. it’s written by a cree author and she tells the story of a cree family. it’s so nice we get to see this kind of representation in children’s literature. and obviously bc this is written by a cree woman, aspects of her culture aren’t written in like many white authors try to do when they’re asserting “yes this is a poc!!! look at their almond eyes!!! their caramel skin!!” and other unnecessary and ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 21, 2019 Laura rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: indiginous, middle-grade, ghosts, netgalley, death, cree, death-and-dying

I love the imagery of this book. Shelley and her grandmother use their hair to catch ghosts and release them so they can go on to the next world. Sometimes ghosts get stuck. Birds die flying into buildings, and then haunt the buildings. Rats die, and aren't sure where to go, and cause a fuss. Most ghosts that Shelley and her grandmother find are animals and just want to go home.

They do not take very ghost they see, such as the ones in the cemetery. Shelley's mother objects but lets them do it, a ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jun 20, 2019 Basil rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2019-arcs, ownvoices, middle-grade

this book was so fabulous and i’m glad it’s in this world for kids to get spooked by. i have to admit i was biased to like it bc GHOSTS but also the writing is fantastic and it gives my heart a thrill to read good writing in middle grade as well as a good story. this is really more of a 4.5 for me, the only thing that holds me back from a 5-star was it could be a bit too on the nose sometimes. but what a good concept and execution and WOW i want to meet allison mills she seems super cool and i a ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jul 08, 2019 Reading Reindeer 2021 On Proxima Centauri rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2019_net-galley_reads, a1-i-own-books, a1-netgalley, armchair-canada, 2019_reads_, 2019_year-of-reading-divergence, 2019_a-z_ha-challenge, july_2019_reads, 2019_dog_challenge, 2019_canadian_challenge_jul1-jun30

A glorious story, simultaneously heartwarming and heartwrenching, about 3 generations of an indigenous Canadian family (Cree) living an embittering life in a city. Grandma and granddaughter Shelley see and communicate with ghosts, helping them to move on. Shelley's mother wants no part of that. But unexpected tragedy impels Shelley to use her gift overtime, collecting ghosts to herself to ease their loneliness--and hers. THE GHOST COLLECTOR is a truly beautiful novel. ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Jul 28, 2019 amanda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley-reviews, absolute-favorites

'She walks around town and looks for the dead in dark corners and forgotten places. She snatched ghosts from alleyways and buildings and takes them home to hide in her room. She rescues them.’

This is a book about a girl who not only sees ghosts but catches them and sets them free so that they can go ahead to the afterlife, whatever outcome that is. That is a gift passed down in her family and she learns it from her grandmother who is known for her expertise ghost catching. To make this even bett 'She walks around town and looks for the dead in dark corners and forgotten places. She snatched ghosts from alleyways and buildings and takes them home to hide in her room. She rescues them.’

This is a book about a girl who not only sees ghosts but catches them and sets them free so that they can go ahead to the afterlife, whatever outcome that is. That is a gift passed down in her family and she learns it from her grandmother who is known for her expertise ghost catching. To make this even better they catch the ghosts by letting down their own hair and letting them get caught in their follicles. It’s such a simple, innovative strategy. The Rapunzels of Ghost Hunting.

This novel was gorgeous to put it bluntly. I’m a ghost lover and I won’t hide it and Allison Mills did a fantastic job at weaving a story about the paranormal and making it heartbreaking and human. The story is about Shelly and her grandmother who catch ghosts, Shelly’s grandmother is teaching Shelly the basics of ghost catching and Shelly’s life has pretty much been all about ghosts (IMPORTANT RULE: DO NOT BRING GHOSTS BACK HOME) when tragedy strikes at home and Shelly’s own mother dies. The tide turns and so does Shelly’s attitude towards ghosts and death.

I loved everything about this and this has roots in Cree folklore which I am not familiar with but it is so interesting and lovely and I’m happy that this book showcases it.

The characters were all fascinating especially Shelly and her grandmother. There are so many great lessons to take away from this especially of course regarding loss and death. But also life itself and what we can glean from it in the short time we have here on earth.

This is definitely one of my favorite reads of 2019. I’m still feeling the losses of my grandmothers so I think this read hit me maybe 20 times harder because I was sobbing like no other but it is also really really good.

Sidenote: It was so bizarre and funny to see both my first name AND middle name used in this book. First time this has EVER happened while reading haha. Amanda and Estelle for anybody curious.

“That’s worth getting remembered.”

Thank you very much to Netgalley and Annick Press Ltd. for this ARC. All opinions are my own. Check out more haunted reviews on my blog: https://aelilyreads.home.blog/ ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 14, 2019 Kathleen Bergen rated it really liked it

The Ghost Collector is a sweet, sad, heartfelt story. I read it all in a single sitting. The Cree folklore was quite fascinating- it's a take on ghosts and ghost catching I had never encountered before, probably because I'm not too familiar with Cree folklore and mythology. The music throughout the story was a great way to set the mood (it helped that it was all music that I quite enjoy). My ARC came with a spotify playlist and I highly recommend going and checking that out.
I definitely got tea ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Oct 26, 2019 Michelle rated it it was amazing

My heart hurts after reading this debut novel - it was one of those books that came into my life at the exact moment that I needed it. What I thought was going to be a spooky middle-grade story about ghost hunting actually turned into a book about losing a parent and the grieving that comes along with it.

My dad passed away (2 weeks ago today as I write this) and my heart is still shattered. This author was able to perfectly describe most of my feelings in a way I haven't been able to articulate. My heart hurts after reading this debut novel - it was one of those books that came into my life at the exact moment that I needed it. What I thought was going to be a spooky middle-grade story about ghost hunting actually turned into a book about losing a parent and the grieving that comes along with it.

My dad passed away (2 weeks ago today as I write this) and my heart is still shattered. This author was able to perfectly describe most of my feelings in a way I haven't been able to articulate. In a way, its comforting to get validation and know that things I've been thinking/feeling are completely normal.

Not only that, but there were direct quotes that weirdly fit my situation in a way that left me shocked after reading. Here are a few:

"It feels like everything should be different, but it's not. Neighbors walk their dogs. Other kids walk home from school. Shelly passes people jogging who smile and wave hello. Something should be different, but it's not. The weather is overcast but not raining. People are living their lives."

"Okay feels like it's years and years away right now, so far away it might as well be the moon, might as well not exist, but the car keeps driving toward the house and Grandma keeps holding Shelly close. The world keeps moving."

"Any day now her mother's going to walk through the door and apologize for being gone for so long, the way she did when she had to pull long shifts at work. Shelly will tell her it's okay. That it doesn't matter if it took a long time, it's just nice to have her home. Only she doesn't come."

"Shelly doesn't think she's a child anymore. She's gotten older since her mom died. She can't stop growing up and getting further away from her mom."

"She wants to tell [him] he needs to stay around if he wants her to remember him. She wants to tell Grandma that memories aren't the same as a person. That they fade. One day she won't remember the sound of [his] voice... One day she won't remember her mother's face. Maybe ghosts aren't the same as living people, but they're better than nothing... She wants to keep everybody here, with her, instead of letting them leave."

"Death is something that happens to everyone, but knowing when it's going to happen, choosing when you make the transition from life to death, choosing whether or not you'll be a ghost and stick around a little longer, isn't something most people get the chance to do." ...more

flag 3 likes · Like · see review

Sep 08, 2019 Stacy Renee (LazyDayLit) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: from-publisher, middle-grade, ghost-stories, arcs, 2019

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Shelly has a special gift passed down through the women in her family that allows her to not only see ghosts but also catch them in her long hair. Her grandmother taught her how to catch the ghosts, appease them, and send them on their way to pass on.

When Shelly's mother dies in a car accident, she is sure she will be able to find her and bring her home but no matter where she ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Sep 04, 2020 Rebekkah Patriarche rated it liked it

This book was sweet but a little uneven for me. Some of the ideas about ghosts were really interesting or descriptive, which made the more bland interactions stand out in a bad way. There were some really well done descriptions of Shelley’s experience of grief that highlighted for me how stilted a lot of the description of her experience in school was. I guess it was a bit like the author was caught between trying not to “tell” too much, and get detailed or figurative in describing Shelley’s int ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Nov 12, 2020 Caro rated it liked it

Shelves: younger

This was an ok book. I liked reading it and it kept me interested. But it didn't pull me in. Great for passing time and just for something to read. Interesting characters, I loved the plot and the creativity that went into writing this. It was written well, but not exactly my cup of joe. To each their own. ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Dec 07, 2019 Avi Grundner rated it it was amazing

Full disclosure, I know Allison - We worked together a couple of summers ago. But my review and rating are honest reflections of what I thought!

This story was honest, beautiful, and incredibly moving. And I can't say anything more without spoilers.

(view spoiler) ...more

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Dec 02, 2019 Jenna (Falling Letters) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2019, indigenous, own-voices, middle-grade

Brief thoughts originally published 8 January 2020 at Falling Letters.

I Can Make This Promise and The Ghost Collector each feature a girl with special talent, albeit one that is more supernatural than the other. Shelley catches ghosts in her hair. She and her grandmother help them move on to where they’re supposed to be. Mostly, Shelley helps with animal ghosts. When Shelley’s mom dies suddenly, Shelley’s grandmother has to take on more work to support the two of them. She leaves Shelley to ...more

flag 2 likes · Like · see review

Apr 01, 2020 Liana Grace rated it really liked it

Shelves: kids

Super cute story for middle graders that will make you smile and likely cry. I loved the references to The Cure and The Smiths, which I’m sure all the kids won’t get.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Oct 10, 2019 Miranda rated it did not like it · review of another edition

The idea behind the story was intriguing which is why I requested the advance reading copy, but it was very disappointing style-wise. It felt like I was reading a very early draft. I did not finish this.

flag 1 like · Like · see review

Dec 05, 2019 Nicole Smith rated it liked it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Favorite Quotes:

- It feels like someone took an ice cream scoop and scooped Shelly out of her body, pulled the part of her that feels things away and set it aside for later. (p62)
- Okay feels like it’s years and years away right now, so far away it might as well be the moon, might as well not exist… (p73)
- “Sometimes the rules are what you make of them. Sometimes they need to be bent--broken. Sometimes they world is made of hard choices.”
- Ms. Flores’s face creases into a mask of sympathy and so Favorite Quotes:

- It feels like someone took an ice cream scoop and scooped Shelly out of her body, pulled the part of her that feels things away and set it aside for later. (p62)
- Okay feels like it’s years and years away right now, so far away it might as well be the moon, might as well not exist… (p73)
- “Sometimes the rules are what you make of them. Sometimes they need to be bent--broken. Sometimes they world is made of hard choices.”
- Ms. Flores’s face creases into a mask of sympathy and sorrow as soon as she sees them. “Shelly,” she says. “It’s so good to have you back with us today. How are you feeling?”
Shelly feels like the answer to Ms. Flores’s question is obvious, but she lies because she knows the right answer. “I’m okay.” (p84-85)
- Their seating assignments, the layout of the classroom--it’s all exactly the same as it was the last time she was there, but Shelly feels like a different person looking at it. (p85)
- Isabel keeps turning to Shelly and stopping right before saying something. By lunch time, Shelly wants to tell Isabel to just say whatever she wants to say. She wants to climb up on the jungle gym and yell at everyone that it’s not like they’ll catch having a dead mom if they talk to her. It’s not a cold. (p86-87)
- “Hitting people shouldn’t be your first response,” she said, pointing a fry at Shelly. “But fighting back when someone tries to bully you isn’t a bad thing, Shell. I want you to know it’s okay to stand up for yourself.” [memory of a conversation with her mother] (p87)
- So if rules don’t apply to Grandma anymore, why should Shelly follow them? (p108)
- So far, nobody’s noticed, or at least nobody cares, that she’s collecting ghosts in her room. They should. Somebody should say something. Should stop being so distracted by bills and clients and work to see her. (p117)
- School is a place she has to go during the day, but she sits quietly and does her homework and ignores the way everyone ignores her. [Shelly after the death of her mother] (p118)
- “Don’t you have friends? Alive friends? Friends who know about death from where you’re sitting? You’re spending too much time straddling two worlds, Little Shell. YOu’re spending too much time all wrapped up in death.” [Joseph to Shelly at the cemetery when she visits him again] (p132)
- The living are overwhelming. They take up space, they’re loud, and they don’t notice Shelly. They ignore her in a way the dead don’t because the dead are Shelly’s friends, no matter what Joseph says. (p134)
- Shelly doesn’t really talk to anyone. She ignores the other kids at school, and everyone but Isabel returns the favor. (p148)
- Thinking about things other than class is a lot easier than paying attention, especially when she knows the other kids are whispering about her behind her back. It’s easier to ignore them. Then she can pretend she doesn’t care. The living change all the time. They switch sides and opinions, get older taller, decide to dye their hair, or move to new houses. The dead are better. They stay the same. (p160)
- There’s so much she wants to say, wants to know, and now every new thing she’s going to learn about her mom will be from moments like Grandma picking up a cassette and telling Shelly her mom liked The Smiths. She’s glad Grandma shared that, but Shelly still wishes she could have learned it from her mom. (p182-183)
- Even more unfair than not getting to say goodbye to her mom is that Shelly doesn’t get to share her life with her. (p183) ...more

flag Like · see review

Mar 02, 2020 Katrina Forest rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills pulls off a child protagonist with an extraordinary ability who is also extraordinarily authentic. Shelly, like her grandmother, is able to connect with ghosts, talk to them, and carry them from one place to another using her hair as a vehicle. Her natural curiosity about them, coupled with her desire to take on jobs like an adult makes the supernatural element so matter-of-fact and effortless. I never thought I could read a story about a character bringing a ...more

flag Like · see review

Dec 06, 2019 Laura Gardner rated it liked it

Shelly is Cree and lives with her mother and grandmother. She is interested in carrying on with her grandmother’s family business of ghost collection and extermination, which her mother has rejected as a career option. Shelly in particular, is tasked with catching ghost animals in her hair and releasing them outdoors when they can more easily move on to the next stage. Shelly’s grandma deals with the more complicated cases. Shelly’s mother disapproves of Shelly going along on the ghost collectin ...more

flag Like · see review

Jan 29, 2020 Storytime With Stephanie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A marvelous new story with so much heart. The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills delves into big feelings of grief and loss and how we cope when those things hit close to home.

Shelly’s grandmother is a ghost collector, she helps the ghosts of people and animals that get stuck behind, it’s a family business. Grandma, Shelly’s mom and even Shelly herself all have the ability to see ghosts and help them along their journey. Shelly loves helping Grandma help the ghosts in their community. Grandma is p ...more

flag Like · see review

Jan 23, 2020 Susan rated it it was amazing

Shelly and her grandmother catch ghosts with their hair. How do you catch ghosts with your hair? Shelly and her mom live with grandma. Shelly and her mom do things her grandma would not approve of but its their secrets. When Shelly and grandma get news that her mom is dead due to a car accident, Shelly can’t believe it. When Shelly “gets it,” she expects her mom to show up to her as a ghost. She doesn’t know why she hasn’t seen her mom’s ghost. She goes and asks ghosts if they have seen her mom. ...more

flag Like · see review

Aug 23, 2019 Kate Waggoner rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2019-read

Thank you to NetGalley and Annick Press for the review copy of The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills. All opinions are my own.

Shelly's family is able to do something extraordinary. Not only can she, her mother, and her grandmother see ghosts, but they're able to catch them in their hair. Shelly and her grandmother capture ghosts in their hair and help them move on. Shelly's mother though has never really been a fan of spending time with ghosts and attempts to keep Shelly from helping her grandmo ...more

flag Like · see review

Sep 10, 2019 Cynthia rated it it was amazing

So so lovely. Allison Mills captures grief with great tenderness as Shelly learns how to let go. Details were sparse to focus on plot, and the third person narration almost made me feel like a ghost myself witnessing Shelly's process. I loved the idea of Shelly and her grandma catching ghosts in their hair (amazing imagery). Astutely touched on serious topics like class and stereotypes about indigenous spirituality in ways that make sense for kids. Greatly appreciated the commentary on capitalis ...more

flag Like · see review

Jul 06, 2020 Tales Untangled rated it really liked it

This is such a different ghost story! The author's great-grandmother told her stories which led to this tale - and I'm glad she did.

The Ghost Collector is not a haunting tale in the sense of giving you chills, but a tale of how our lives might be haunted. Haunted with grieving.

Shelly has inherited her family's ability to catch ghosts in her hair and to help them along. She can catch the ghosts of animals as well as people. When her mother dies, it's only natural that Shelly would expect to have ...more

flag Like · see review

Oct 23, 2020 Benjamin added it

Shelves: bedside-reading, horror, library-borrowed

I don't exactly recall how this book ended up on my TBR -- I think after The Only Good Indians, I found some recs on Twitter for other books by Native authors, and Allison Mills's middle grade book came up? That seems likely.

This being maybe the second or so modern MG book I've read, my frame of reference may not be adjusted appropriately for what an MG book can deal with, but I'll say this:

At less than 200 pages, this is a pretty quick read, where sometimes whole chunks of time are summed up or ...more

flag Like · see review

Nov 23, 2019 Michelle Mallette rated it liked it

See my full review here.
Like all the women in their family, Shelly and her grandmother can see ghosts. And they can catch them. In their hair. Once caught, the ghosts can be set free and sent on their way, to wherever it is they are supposed to be. Sometimes the ghosts are in a house, sometimes they are animals, and sometimes they are quite happy to stick around. Shelly loves joining her grandmother on a ghost job. Grandmother says you can’t free them till they are ready to go, but often a cup o ...more

flag Like · see review

Jan 05, 2021 Lisabeth rated it liked it

Shelves: magical-realism, own-voices

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

flag Like · see review

Sep 24, 2019 Carter Skye rated it liked it

After losing her mother unexpectedly, Shelly begins to hoard ghosts. A gift that has been passed down through generations of women in her family, Shelly has the ability to see ghosts, catch them, and help them move on. When she realizes that her mother has not come back as a ghost, she can't let the other ghosts go.

The Ghost Collector was a beautiful story of a girl who has spent her entire life dealing with death, only to realize that it's so much different than she realized once she's lost so ...more

flag Like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
young teen book ...: the ghost collector	1	2	Mar 02, 2021 05:24AM

Readers also enjoyed

See similar books…

Genres

Childrens > Middle Grade

37 users

Paranormal > Ghosts

22 users

Fantasy > Paranormal

15 users

Fantasy

14 users

Fiction

11 users

Death

9 users

Cultural > Canada

6 users

Young Adult

6 users

Horror

5 users

Childrens

5 users

See top shelves…

About Allison Mills

Allison Mills

13 followers

Books by Allison Mills

The Congress of Rough Writers: Flash Fiction Anthology Vol. 1

More…

News & Interviews

32 Highly Anticipated Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reads for Summer

The coming season is a big one for the science fiction and fantasy genres, with the release of some of 2021's most anticipated speculative...

Trivia About The Ghost Collector

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from The Ghost Collector

“Little Shell,” says Joseph, before Shelly can leave to follow Estelle. “You’re not dead yet.”
Shelly shivers. She likes Joseph, but she doesn’t like the yet. “I know.”
Joseph shrugs. “Just wanted to make sure you did. I like you. Don’t want to watch you fade away.” He slides his headphones on and leans back to look at the sky again.” — 0 likes

More quotes…

See a Problem?

Preview — The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills

The Ghost Collector

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Genres

About Allison Mills

Books by Allison Mills

News & Interviews

Trivia About The Ghost Collector

Quotes from The Ghost Collector

See a Problem?

Preview — The Ghost Collector by Allison Mills

The Ghost Collector

Get A Copy

Friend Reviews

Reader Q&A

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Readers also enjoyed

Genres

About Allison Mills

Books by Allison Mills

News & Interviews

Trivia About The Ghost Collector

Quotes from The Ghost Collector

new topic
Discuss This Book