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The Phantom Tower

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The Phantom Tower

Hardcover

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Overview

Twin brothers discover their new home is also a portal—for an hour a day—to a parallel dimension in this spine-chilling middle-grade adventure, perfect for fans of The Mysterious Benedict Society

Twelve-year-old twins Colm and Mal might look identical, but they’re different in just about every other way. The one thing they can agree on is that neither brother wants to move to Chicago for a fresh start with their mom two years after their dad’s death.

The boys soon discover that their new apartment building, Brunhild Tower, is full of strange quirks: a mysterious Princess who warns them not to wander the building at midday, eerie sounds coming from the walls, and an elevator that’s missing a button for the thirteenth floor. Then one afternoon, that button appears, catapulting the brothers and their inquisitive new neighbor, Tamika, into a parallel dimension and a twin building stuck in time, where the spirits of all the former residents of Brunhild Tower live on, trapped by an ancient curse. Now, Colm, Mal, and Tamika must race against time to solve the mystery of the phantom tower—or risk spending an eternity as ghosts themselves.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781524739522
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	08/21/2018
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,149,970
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Keir Graff is the author of funny and fantastical middle-grade adventure novels, including The Phantom Tower (a Chicago Tribune Best Children's Book of the Year) and The Matchstick Castle (an official Illinois Reads selection). He also writes books for grown-ups—some of them under made-up names! A longtime resident of Chicago, he lives near the shore of Lake Michigan with his wife, Marya, their sons, Felix and Cosmo, and their cats, Toothless and Totoro.

Read an Excerpt

Chapter One
(Continues…)

Excerpted from "The Phantom Tower"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Keir Graff.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

From the B&N Reads Blog

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Praise for The Phantom Tower:
A Chicago Tribune Best Children's Book of 2018

"Goose bump-inducing fun."—Kirkus Reviews

"[A] nail-biting adventure. . . . Hand to fans of Eoin Colfer’s 'Artemis Fowl' novels, Roland Smith’s 'IQ' series, or Mac Barnett’s 'The Brixton Brothers.'"—School Library Journal

"Exciting action, a creepy curse and well-drawn characters make for supremely cozy reading on a cold winter’s night."—Chicago Tribune

Praise for The Matchstick Castle:

"Fast-paced, anarchic fun for reluctant and avid readers alike."—Kirkus Reviews

“This quirky novel is reminiscent of a Wes Anderson movie for the tweenage set. . . . For those who enjoy a bit of absurdist humor with their realism.”—School Library Journal

“A zippy, adventurous romp in the woods complete with fierce animals and buried treasure.”—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"What makes this book special is the way Graff evokes the excitement of new vistas . . . . a compelling reminder that it's a great big world out there, just waiting for the next generation of dreamers and explorers."—Chicago Tribune

"A whimsical adventure with a large dose of humor? Yes, please! This story spoke to my inner child, who suffered too many boring summer vacations and longed to discover something magical and exciting in my own backyard."—Jennifer Chambliss Bertman, New York Times bestselling author of Book Scavenger and The Unbreakable Code

"For boys and girls alike, this story sings.”—Blue Balliett, award-winning author of Chasing Vermeer

“A towering tale filled with astonishing action, amazing characters, and two very daring adventurers.”—David Lubar, author of the Monsterrific Tales series, the Weenies series, and Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie

From the Publisher

2018-05-14
Welcome to Brunhild Tower, a complicated fortress of an apartment building with a mysterious past.Colm McShane, his twin brother, Mal (short for Malachy), and their widowed mother move to Chicago from Dallas for Mom's new job at the University of Chicago. Brunhild Tower is unlike anything the 12-year-olds have seen before. Although "weird and old," their new apartment, with a maid's room, butler's pantry, and two bathrooms, is bigger than their old house. There's also a view of Lake Michigan. So why is the rent so low? What does Mom's odd new boss mean when he says it's "impossible to leave" Brunhild Tower? Their eccentric neighbor, Princess Veronica Margareta of Syldavia (a nod to Tin-Tin, perhaps?) issues an odd warning: Don't wander the building between the hours of 1 and 2 in the afternoon. Does the elderly princess's warning have anything to do with the button for the 13th floor—excluded from the elevator panel in accordance with superstition—which only appears for that one hour each day? Colm, who still grieves for his father, is more open to the unknown than his just-the-facts brother. Soon, good-natured narrator Colm, pedantic Mal, and their new friend and neighbor, bibliophile Tamika, find themselves on the phantom 13th floor, exploring what lies beyond the elevator doors. Colm, his brother, and their friend are believable middle graders, and the mystery unfolds into a solid adventure that offers just enough chills to keep the pages flipping. Colm and Mal are white, and Tamika is black.Goose bump-inducing fun. (Fantasy. 8-13)

Kirkus Reviews