Mal de Fantasma = Ghost Fever

The English and Spanish text flows smoothly and invitingly, and Hayes's short chapters make this perfect for classroom read alouds, as well as for independent reading. Sure to be popular with young chapter book readers who enjoy a chill running down the spine, Ghost Fever is also recommended for reluctant older readers. --Criticas

For the past 28 years, the pool of Bluebonnet candidates have been selected by librarians, who put together a master list of 20 titles they've observed their tiny charges checking out or that teachers recommend. Eight- to 12-year-old critics commit to reading five books from the list -- making the Bluebonnet the largest children's reading program in the country...It's the first time a bilingual book was selected. I doubt the kids who cast Bluebonnet votes at 1,700 libraries across the state consciously voted for change. They probably just dug the story of un inquilino, a renter, his daughter, and the ghost in the quincea era dress -- the symbol of Latina becoming...It's reassuring to see kids can't resist a good old fashioned gross-out cuento, en cualquier idioma. --San Antonio Current

Simple black-and-white drawings throughout this bilingual book make it an easy page-turner and point up the important moral lessons included in the story. Fortunately, those moral lessons are based on compassion, tenderness, and hope, rather than dwelling on guilt and fear. Hayes's experience and friendship with the Latino community make his work both authentic and engaging. --ForeWord Magazine

Highly recommended! ...Spanish phrases, easily understood in context, are integral to the English version. Appropriately spooky black and white pencil illustrations punctuate the text. --Reforma

What better way to learn or improve your English or Spanish than to read a bilingual ghost story! ...Even with the text switching back and forth from several paragraphs of English to a loose translation in Spanish, the suspense builds. --Children's Literature

Hayes also thinks kids love ghost stories because they are a sort of safe scare. 'They get the thrill of being scared without any real danger, ' he says. 'And a ghost story defies reason and explanation. There's something satisfying in this super-rational age to contemplate things that science can't explain.' --McAllen Monitor

In this chilling tale of a haunted house in a small Arizona town, Grandmother 'knows all about the ways of ghosts.' She helps Elena solve a mystery and learn 'a valuable lesson about life.' The text is in both Spanish and English. --Yellow Brick Road