Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse (Goth Girl, 1)

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The characters are suitably Byronic. Mary Shellfish, the distinguished lady novelist, arrives to stay at a house party, accompanied by the poets Molebridge and O'Quincy, who spend dinner arguing over which of them wandered lonely as a cloud. The Lovelace connection is served by Dr Cabbage, an eccentric inventor who has been employed to construct a calculating machine. He has two children: Emily, an aspiring artist, and William, who suffers from "chameleon syndrome" and blends in with his surroundings, whatever they might be. They befriend Ada and aid her in foiling a scurrilous scheme hatched by one of the staff. This is a story of found family, of learning to be vulnerable and to trust, and letting people get to know the real you. The experience of being a foster kid was realistic and the discussions about mental health were refreshingly honest. It’s suddenly hard to believe that I’ve lived this long without knowing another human being who understands what this is like. The cover image, which I loved and was what drew me to this book in the first place, had me expecting a middle grade story. Imagine my surprise when Jess’ first day of school included a stranger mid psychotic break trying to get as many swear words in a sentence as possible and a reference shortly thereafter to a “kinky sex dungeon”. Spoiler: Not a kinky sex dungeon. Goofy, geeky Oscar was absolutely adorable and stole my heart early on. His enthusiasm and passion were infectious and I wanted to watch him as he created the foam weapons of my dreams.

Diversity. That's the other thing that I appreciated about this book. The diversity! There is an LGBTQ character, fat MC (and done in a positive way,) neurodiversity. There was so much of it and I soked it all in! Basically Goth Girl is Ada Goth a young girl living with her father in Ghastly Gorm-Hall. Her mother was an acrobat and died while high wire walking. Because Ada reminds Lord Goth so much of his wife, he hides Ada away. A child must be heard and not seen. He wants her to walk about Gorm-Hall in loud boots so he can hide when he hears her. He only has one meal a week with her. Ada has gone through a number of nannies but they never last. Not because Ada isn't nice, but because of them. She will get a new one during this particular story. I'll let you meet her.For eight and above, there’s a fascinating Swedish fantasy from Pushkin: The Murderer’s Ape by Jakob Wegelius, translated by Peter Graves. Sally Jones – always given her full name – is a silent but multitalented gorilla; engineer, chess-player and cargo-boat companion of the Chief, a Finnish seaman and her greatest friend. But when the Chief is framed for murder, she falls in with fado singer Ana Molini and Luigi Fidardo, a repairer of musical instruments, and begins the arduous, far-flung process of clearing his name. Sally Jones’s dispassionate, delightfully old-fashioned diction is a perfect match for Wegelius’s nostalgic monochrome illustrations. This book is perfect for anyone who has ever felt left out! Goth Girl, Queen of the Universe by Lindsay S. Zrull is a heartwarming YA book about girl who is constantly bullied but who carves out her own niche through her own strength and determination. The story revolves around Jessica, who has bounced from foster home to foster home since she was seven. At school, she's called a witch and bullied for her goth fashion. Meanwhile, online, her followers praise her fashion and make-up skills. One day, a woman messages her claiming to be her biological mother. Will their reunion be everything that she expects?

I really loved the characters. Even though she seems a bit cold towards others, Jess is such a strong and loveable person. Oscar is also really cute and all of them are very supportive, especially Barbra, the foster mum. I enjoyed the talks about mental illness a lot, it was really interested. I like how this book pushes us to put into question how we view mental illness such as schizophrenia. I’m also a big fan of cosplay so what more could I ask for. I recommend this book to anyone who feels left out or is interested in a story about mental illness. This book is so well illustrated that nothing and no-one is left to the imagination. I particularly enjoyed being able to see Ishmael, Ada and the other creatures in the story, and it certainly helps when trying to visualise the gothic, dark surroundings. I'm a big fan of illustrated books, mainly because that extra element adds a certain magic not found in normal, text-only novels. It's also a treat to see an author's own illustrations, which in this case are as much a part of the story as the words.

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Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse is a brilliantly hilarious and imaginative story for children and adults alike. I'm very much looking forward to reading Goth Girl and the Fete Worse Than Death and Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fight. I hope we get to go on more adventures with William and Emily Cabbage and the rest of the Attic Club! The representation of foster kids. I love how Lindsay wrote about Jess's feelings about being a foster kids. It's so realistic (and then i knew that Lindsay Zrull was once a foster teen herself). Jess's point of view was kinda cynical and sour, and she's clearly have a major trust issue toward foster families (and life, basically), but judging from her past, i think it's reasonable and it makes me want to hug her :( I just wished there are more Jess's past life that described in the story, because i think it will more elaborate her complicated nature. Ada Goth is the only child of Lord Goth. The two live together in the enormous Ghastly-Gorm Hall. Lord Goth believes that children should be heard and not seen, so Ada has to wear large clumpy boots so that he can always hear her coming. This makes it hard for her to make friends and, if she's honest, she's rather lonely. Then one day William and Emily Cabbage come to stay at the house, and together with a ghostly mouse called Ishmael they and Ada begin to unravel a dastardly plot that Maltravers, the mysterious indoor gamekeeper, is hatching. Ada and her friends must work together to foil Maltravers before it's too late! As some have already said; much of the writing, jokes and play on words would be lost on most children as they would be simply too young to `get it' or understand them, and so this is rather an odd book all round... Not quite sure what age group it is really aimed at - still a great and fun read though, but am undecided myself yet as to whether I shall be purchasing the follow up.

The wonderful illustrations by the former children’s laureate (2015-2017), Chris Riddell, make these mystery stories perfect for readers 7+ who love adventures with a dark or fantastical twist. I thought this would be like a cutesy gothic story... It's not. I also didn't expect Commic Con and constant pop culture/ pop culture references to play as big of a role in the story as it does.

About Chris Riddell

I got this as a birthday present last year from a Goodreads friend and I finally got around to reading it! (But honestly most of the books I want to read on my bookshelf have been lying there for years because I'm never in the mood or whatever.) I'm a huge fan of children's books and this one is lovely. Aside from currently being the prettiest book I own (kudos to my Kindle for stopping pretty books, or really books in general, from being on my shelf), the story is pretty good too. The first Goth Girl book, Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse, came out in 2013, winning the Costa Children’s Book Award and getting nominated for the CILIP Kate Greenaway and the Children’s National Book Award. There are now four books in the series. Goth Girl, Queen of the Universe exceeded my expectations in every way possible! I love this book so much! The mental health representation was especially done so well. I liked the contrast of how Jess's mother handles her mental health versus how Barbara manages hers. Also the chats between Oscar and Jess about anxiety and stress were realistic and done with such empathy. Ada Goth lives at Ghastly-Gorm Hall with her father, the famous cycling poet Lord Goth. There are a host of servants, plenty of eccentric house guests and at least half a dozen ghosts, but Ada is lonely. She doesn't have any friends her own age, and Lord Goth believes children should be 'heard and not seen', making her wear clumpy boots so he can always hear her coming. Jess is a foster child and already had a lot other foster homes before she got to Barb. In the many years as a foster child she made up rules for herself to not get attached to anyone.

Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. There are pop culture references and little gems of geekdom throughout and these had my smiling at almost every chapter- hello scream queens and Labyrinth! There is a strong message of inclusivity which is something I am constantly seeking in books. Zrull really creates a wonderful world here. Jess’s inner thinking is super fun and I love seeing the portrayal of fashion and make up as a way of enjoying someone’s creativity and self expression. I love her extra-ness when it comes to her “goth identity”. Oscar is an adorable blushing boy and they have such well written convos and I love all the sweet moments they share as they get to know each other. I love that they can share a hobby and goof off and pay attention to the other’s interests but above all else, they trust each other to open up about the serious things too and discuss it in a mature way, reassuring each other.

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Ada Goth lives in Ghastly-Gorm Hall with her strange father, Lord Goth, numerous ghosts and an array of servants. One night the ghost of a mouse called Ishmael shows up, explaining that he'd been killed in a mouse trap and was no destined to roam Ghastly-Gorm Hall forever. What he doesn't know is that there's trouble afoot, and he and Ada are the only ones who can solve the mystery.