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The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood & Co., 1)
Last updated Thursday, October 14, 2021
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Date of Publication: 2014
ISBN: 978-1423164913
Grade Level: 5th (GLCs: Click here for grade level guidelines.)
Date(s) Used: Oct. 2021
Synopsis:
A sinister problem has occurred in London: all nature of ghosts, haunts, spirits, and specters are appearing throughout the city, and they aren't exactly friendly. Only young people have the psychic abilities required to see - and eradicate - these supernatural foes. Many different Psychic Detection Agencies have cropped up to handle the dangerous work, and they are in fierce competition for business.
In The Screaming Staircase, the plucky and talented Lucy Carlyle teams up with Anthony Lockwood, the charismatic leader of Lockwood & Co, a small agency that runs independent of any adult supervision. After an assignment leads to both a grisly discovery and a disastrous end, Lucy, Anthony, and their sarcastic colleague, George, are forced to take part in the perilous investigation of Combe Carey Hall, one of the most haunted houses in England. Will Lockwood & Co. survive the Hall's legendary Screaming Staircase and Red Room to see another day?
| Note to readers: |
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This is a ghost story set in England where ghostly things go on every night. This story becomes a murder mystery.
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| Discussion topics for before reading: |
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This book is first in a series about a group of young people (all under 16) who are “Ghosthunters and Removers” for lack of a better name. Their youth gives them certain abilities that adults lose once they past their teens. Does this sound like a something you would like to do? Do you believe in ghosts?
Vocabulary
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forlorn: lonely, sad, miserable
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rapier: a sword with a narrow blade for slashing and thrusting
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curfew: a time period, usually between sundown and sunrise, established by legal authority that requires persons to stay indoors with specific exceptions. Also, a specific time a parent or guardian might give as time to be home by.
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Greek fire: a weapon that burns usually by mixing to specific compounds (e.g., Molotov cocktail)
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malaise: a feeling of sadness, unhappiness that makes one feel like having no energy to do things.
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vole: a rodent; a small mouselike or ratlike creature
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| Discussion topics for during/after reading: |
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As Lockwood & Lucy survey the Hope house, before they begin on the ghost, what do you think? Is this something you might want to do (regardless of the pay) … wandering around a dark house with little light to see, … to check out where someone had died?
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*Note: These craft ideas are just suggestions.
You can use them, but you don't have to use them.
You can expand upon them, or add your own twist.
Remember, though, that the focus of your time should
not be on the development and execution of a craft;
the focus should be on the read-aloud and the
enjoyment of the book!
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