Dead Boy

Book #116 Read in 2015
Dead Boy by Laurel Gale

This would make a good Halloween read aloud for upper elementary students/read for middle schoolers.  Crow was dead but his parents wished him back...but he's not quite alive.  His mother won't let him go outside or go to school...she is worried what people would think when they smell him (it isn't a nice smell) or see maggots come out of his ears.  Crow just wants to have friends.  He finally gets one when Melody moves into the house next door.  Crow and Melody go trick-or-treating (the one night of the year that Crow can fit in with the crowds) and they come across a magical shape-shifter.  Crow realizes that his parents didn't tell him the whole story about how he died and how they brought him back.  Will he ever be able to live a normal life?  This was a quick read that was creepy but not too scary, had humor in it and a plot with enough action to keep readers engaged.  I received a copy of this book from Amazon Vine in exchange for a honest review.