2022, Juvenile Fiction
WISE Score
A manual for ghost care that trades spooky scares for earwax truffles and a surprisingly touching look at what it means to be a friend for life—and after.
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Rebecca Green’s How to Make Friends with a Ghost is a masterclass in tone. It manages to be offbeat and funny while landing a final emotional punch that most adult novels miss. It isn't a story about a ghost; it's a story about the endurance of friendship.
If your kid is the type who builds 'apartments' for roly-polies or takes care of their stuffed animals like they’re living beings, this will be their new manifesto. It’s safe, beautiful, and weird in all the right ways.
Perfect for the 3-to-8 crowd. It’s the ideal 'spooky season' book for kids who are actually terrified of monsters but love the idea of a secret supernatural friend. Adults will honestly want it on their coffee tables for the art alone.
It models a deep, lifelong commitment to friendship. The tone is gentle, and it handles the passage of time and the concept of 'forever' with incredible warmth.
The 'how-to manual' format for a supernatural concept is brilliant. It encourages kids to see the mundane (like whipped cream) as potentially magical (a ghost).
Despite the 'ghost' subject matter, there is zero peril or horror. It's a cozy, safe read for even the most sensitive kids.
It subtly introduces themes of aging, loyalty, and the cycle of life without being heavy-handed or depressing.
Most ghost stories for kids fall into two camps: the 'Scooby-Doo' mystery where the ghost is a fake, or the 'Casper' vibe where the ghost is just a lonely kid. How to Make Friends with a Ghost carves out a third space. It treats the ghost as a pet-meets-partner, a creature that requires specific care—like being read bedtime stories and not being mistaken for a marshmallow.
What makes this book stick is the structure. It’s written as a guidebook, which naturally engages a child's sense of order and empathy. You aren't just watching a story happen; you're learning how to be a custodian of a friendship. This makes the eventual passage of time in the book—where the little girl grows into an old woman—feel like a victory of loyalty rather than a sad ending.
Rebecca Green’s illustrations are the heavy lifters here. In a market saturated with digital, primary-colored gloss, her work feels like it was found in a dusty attic in the best way possible. The colors are sophisticated—pinks, greys, and ochres—and the details in the 'ghost snacks' and 'ghost hiding spots' provide plenty of 'I Spy' moments for kids during repeat readings.
In an era of fast-paced, loud media, this book is a necessary slow-down. It’s a quiet read. It doesn't rely on a twist or a slapstick gag. It relies on the idea that if you take care of something, it stays with you. It’s an essential addition to a home library, especially for kids who might be dealing with the 'scary' concepts of ghosts or monsters for the first time. It defangs the fear and replaces it with a mud tart.
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