Graveyard Girls: 1-2-3-4 I Declare a Thumb War

Graveyard Girls: 1-2-3-4 I Declare a Thumb War
Lisi Harrison & Daniel Kraus
Union Square/Sterling, 2022
243 pages
Grades 4-7
Friendship/Horror

Multiple narrators relate the tale of a group of horror-loving friends looking for real ghosts the week that the town remembers Silas Hoke, who is also one of our narrators. Silas committed a murder many years ago and the community has a yearly celebration featuring nightly activities to keep his restless spirit away. The friends have a group called the "Grim Sleepers", where they take turns hosting sleepovers and sharing scary tales. When Silas Hoke leaves them all the same mysterious text with an invitation to visit his grave at night, they are scared, but can't resist. What will they find there? Meanwhile, the girls are dealing with family, school, and friendship troubles, glad to have the solid friendships of the group. When an unexpected newcomer asks to join, they are hesitant. Are her intentions sincere? Eventually, some new understandings are made, some mysteries are solved, and some problems are ironed out. A new group is formed out of the old and the "Graveyard Girls" are born--and ready to tackle their next spooky adventure!

Two veteran authors, traditionally writing for older readers, join forces to create a new middle grade series, jumping into the trending horror genre. At its core, this is a friendship story with a group of nice, nerdy girls battling the queen-bee clique. Within this framework of a love of scary tales, the seemingly different girls bind together as friends. A focal unrelated story is told around the middle of the book, serving as the inspiration for the title, and is framed within violet pages as to not confuse readers. The same color violet is used for page numbers, chapter headings, the few graphics included, and emails and text messages. I love the formatting of the book and feel that it is an attractive package that even reluctant readers will pick up. Chapter headings are labeled with the narrator's name as to thankfully avoid confusion. The book gives just enough creep to satisfy the target audience without keeping anyone up at night. A cliffhanging ending and sneak peek chapter for the next installment (Scream for the Camera) will entice readers to keep going in the series. After spending time with the Graveyard Girls expect young people to be inspired to start monster clubs of their own.