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    Took: A Ghost Story
    Took: A Ghost Story
    Took: A Ghost Story
    Audiobook5 hours

    Took: A Ghost Story

    Written by Mary Downing Hahn

    Narrated by Nick Mondelli

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    After Daniel's young sister disappears in the woods, he starts to believe the myth about a witch and her terrifying hog who take little girls and keep them for fifty years.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDreamscape Media
    Release dateOct 8, 2019
    ISBN9781666556346
    Author

    Mary Downing Hahn

    Mary Downing Hahn’s many acclaimed novels include such beloved ghost stories as Wait Till Helen Comes, Deep and Dark and Dangerous, and Took. A former librarian, she has received more than fifty child-voted state awards for her work. She lives in Columbia, Maryland, with a cat named Nixi.

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    Reviews for Took

    4/5

    45 ratings17 reviews

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    • 5/5
      AWSOME AWSOME AWESOME this book was full of adventures and mysteries! I recommend reading it!!
    • 4/5
      At first Daniel dismisses the tales of the witch and her man-eating razorback hog, Bloody Bones, as superstitious nonsense, but gradually he is forced to believe that Erica is in real danger. When Erica vanishes, he knows she's been "took," and he must summon all his courage to confront Old Auntie and take his sister back.
      -- from the book jacket

      This book gave me the shivers. Take kids that hear and see things that the adults don't notice or don't believe. Add a local legend that we, as readers, know is true, but adults, of course don't believe. Multiply by a doll that only talks to the young girl, a witch that preys on young girls every 50 years... Don't forget the freaky man-eating razorback hog, and the result is a perfectly creepy story that does not disappoint.

      I think kids being kidnapped by witches is an especially scary plot line. Being in the dark woods all alone helps, of course. I loved every minute of reading this book and plan on finding more to read by this author. I found it in our elementary school library, but I think it is important to make sure the individual student can handle the scariness of this story.

      Recommended to:
      Students in grades 5-8 who aren't scared of creepy witches, man-eating razorback hogs, and dark forests.

    • 5/5
      There is nothing like a good ghost story to keep a person up at night. Whether it is the creepy tales told on Halloween nights in the U.S.A. or the Yamishiba ghost stories of Japan that are told in the summer time to keep people cool. A good ghost story can make a night of stormy weather seem magical. This book is written about a local legend that tells a story of an old hag who steals little girls every fifty years. With every disappearance there is a mysterious reappearance of an unknown child that slowly withers and dies within a month. No one knows who this ghostly woman is that haunts the forests of West Virginia and no one wants to find out. It is not until Daniel and his sister Erica move into a rundown old farm, near the edges of the woods, that a whispering of “old auntie” reemerges. Town folks begin to squabble about the olden days and children taunt both Daniel and Erica until the unthinkable happens. For Daniel soon learns that there is a ghost in West Virginia and it is a deadly ghost woman that wants something that he holds dear. I really enjoyed reading this book. I found it to be well written and to be rather unique. I have read a ton of ghost stories and I have to say that the author put a lot of thought into this story. I honestly believe that any age can enjoy this book. It was a very fast moving story and the characters were well thought of. I plan on giving this book to my daughter and I am positive she will enjoy it as much as I did. I don’t count it as a traditional ghost story. It is a little different than that, but that is really nice. It seems like the typical ghost story is just a rehash of what is already out there, so I really enjoyed this one. I want to say thank you to the author and Goodreads for sending me this book in a giveaway. It was very much appreciated and I had a great time! Thanks a bunch.
    • 4/5
      For those kids who love the chills and thrills of a scary story, "Took" will take them there. Plenty of suspense, cliffhanger chapters, and it plays on the dark fears of every child: the menance of the unseen, being taken away from loved ones, the consequences of getting caught in serious trouble. But every child also wants to be a hero, and Daniel provides that vicarious thrill, of being the only one with the strength and courage to save Erica.Booktalk: Daniel and his little sister Erica used to have a really good life. They went to private school, lived in a nice area, and their parents owned two cars and went golfing. Then the recession hit. Their dad lost his job, the money was gone and they had to sell their big house. The family ended up moving: to a rundown old farmhouse deep in the woods near a small town in WV. Daniel and Erica hate it there. The house is always cold and leaking and the woods are scary at night. The kids at school don't like them, they think Daniel and Erica are snobs, and that their family must be crazy to live in that old farmhouse. Because everyone in that small town knows the story about a little girl who was taken from that house 50 years ago. And everyone knows the girl was taken by old Auntie and her pet hog Bloody Bones who live in the forest. And everyone knows that no one has seen the little girl since. But nobody yet knows that old Auntie and Bloody Bones have their eyes...on Erica.
    • 3/5
      I read this book because my 9 yo is participating in Battle of the Books at school and this is one of the books. She doesn't like suspenseful books and is easily scared. I'm not a fan of scary books either. It was definitely too creepy for me and my kid. For kids who like scary stories, it is well written. I'll include a list for parents deciding if this is appropriate for their child:
      * evil possessed doll
      * gruesome man-eating hog
      * Undying witch who kidnaps children and erases their memories
      * Some bullying at school
      * Parents start drinking and fighting when child disappears, neglect other child
    • 3/5
      A great book for kids and adult who enjoy ghost stories. A creepy and spooky tale, like those told around campfires. Nothing gruesome!
    • 3/5
      This is a graphic novel version of a popular Children’s horror story. I wish I would have liked it more. The original novel was spooky and full of suspense, but the graphic novel just did not give the same vibes. It felt more drawn out and like the story was never going to end. The story is a family moves to a new house in the woods. The family starts to change, being moody, grouchy, and dirtier. Then the little sister goes missing. The son is sure the witch of the woods has stolen her. A new little girl shows up who was “took” years ago, but is destined to live a very short life. The story is still a great story, and I think it would make an excellent movie/show, but it may have been the illustrations or the way the story was broken up, but I was just not impressed with this story.
    • 5/5
      Best work by this author that I've listened to! Enjoyable.
    • 5/5
      I love their book, we were going to read it in class but I’m still remote so I read it on this. I think you really read this
    • 5/5
      Great story! i would label it more of a suspenseful piece over a horror story. Although, the Auntie is certainly a terrifying character. What set this book apart from other suspense and hour stories were the characters. Daniel reminded me of typically boy who does not want to hang out with his baby sister, Erica. He can be mean at times, but he really does love his sister. When Erica is missing, he feels guilty for reacting to her like a typical brother would. Daniel and Erica's parents were very human in the story. Often parents can be flat characters, but their portrayal really makes the books honest. I would recommend this for middle school students; it may be a little too scary for younger grades.
    • 4/5
      Another great book from Mary Downing Hahn. The story moves at a fast past and left my students in suspense when I had to stop for lunch. The antagonist is truly creepy and her deeds very scary. The element of her sidekick was in my students' opinion the best part, and they even made a game out of it. The doll was always creepy. Erica was the typically annoying sister, but her brother was brave enough to believe in impossible things and do face his fears when he goes after her.
    • 4/5
      After reading this- I do believe in spooks! I do believe in spooks! I do!
    • 2/5
      Took: A Ghost Story... well, really a witch story. I'm an old man who loves books written for teens and preteens. When I was a boy, we told "ghost stories" at night, sitting with our friends on the curb of our suburban street. Took feels very much like one of those stories. It's the same kind of scary/creepy. A witch in the woods kidnaps a little girl to serve as her slave for 50 years, during which time the girl does not age, and then after the 50 years is up, expels the previous girl and kidnaps a new one. Daniel, his parents and his sister move from urban Connecticut to rural West Virginia. When his sister is the witch's next victim, he is determined to get her back, even though his parents will not accept what all the locals in the town know... the witch is real.The book has two weaknesses. One, it is nothing at all more than a spooky tale. None of the characters are thoroughly developed. The parents are just cardboard cut-outs. The townspeople are all exactly the same, a uniform lot of superstitious rednecks. Two, it's too long. At 260 pages, the story stretches about 160 pages more than necessary for such a lean plot. For a late elementary or early middle school reader who likes a spooky story, yes, this is better than a "Goosebumps" book, but it is not a great book.
    • 5/5
      Amazing book to listen to. This book was an amazing horror story to listen to. Mary Downing Hahn has a lot of horror books and so far I have only read 3 by Mary Downing Hahn. All of them have been amazing.
    • 5/5
      I discovered at Thanksgiving that my granddaughter Haylee and I share a love of books written by Mary Downing Hahn. She expressed a desire to read Took. She said she’d been trying to get a copy from her school library, but it was always checked out. I made sure she got one for Christmas. She and her brother Jacob spent the Wednesday through Friday with us. We took them to the library yesterday. While she sat and read books to her brother, I borrowed her book and read it. Mary Downing Hahn’s books have that special creep factor that make all of her books good. You have a family moving into an old and creepy house. The children don’t like it. The kids at school don’t like them, and the parents are beginning to fight more and more. The author sets you up for a great scare. As you read and see how brave Daniel is, you are thinking to yourself, ‘I wouldn’t be brave enough to do that’. One thing that makes this book so good is it has an urban legend. Every area has their own urban legends. This legend is based on an actual disappearance that had happened fifty years before. Now it is happening again. Is their truly a witch in the woods? I will definitely need to get another copy for my classroom shelves.
    • 3/5
      More creepy than scary. More like a fairy-tale inspired fantasy than a ghost story, though. There was even mention of Hansel and Gretel, so I'm thinking the author must have been at least inspired by fairy tales when she wrote Took. Surprisingly, the doll wasn't the creepiest element; the woods were.3 stars
    • 4/5
      Took is an excellent young person's spooky story. The tale revolves around young Daniel and his family. Due to lost jobs and money troubles Daniel and his family leave their affluent lifestyle in Connecticut and move to an old, run-down farmhouse in the woods of North Virginia. Daniel and his sister Erica have a hard time fitting in at their new school and the local children tease and torment them with scary stories about old Auntie and her side-kick Bloody Bones, and how she takes a child every 50 years. Even though they try to discount the stories as old, silly superstitions, both Daniel and Erica are a little spooked living so far away from city lights and friendly people. Their parents are feeling the strain too and the whole family seems to be changing into an unhappy bunch. But then disaster strikes and Daniel must summon up all his courage and love to help his family out of a terrible situation.Mary Downing Hahn has written some wonderful ghost stories for young people over the years, and here's another to add to the list. Well written, compelling, sufficiently creepy enough to keep you turning the pages for more, but make sure you keep the lights on.