Night of the Living Dolls

Zelda had been given a doll, “Sadie Sees”, by her maternal grandmother after Zelda had found an old trunk in her grandmother’s attic. Her grandmother had yelled at her not to open the trunk which surprised Zelda, but later her grandmother, feeling bad about her reaction, gave Zelda the doll. Now it seems like Sadie Sees has human eyes and departs from her three usual phrases. Lucy, Zelda’s younger sister, is also aware of the change in the doll.

The girls’ grandmother dies unexpectedly, and the girls, along with their parents, return to the grandmother’s house to stay until the funeral. The girls find their grandmother’s journal and yearbook along with six dolls with names on them. Zelda realizes that the names come from six classmates of her grandmothers who perished in a school fire. These classmates were mean and nasty to their grandmother, the daughter of the school caretaker. Zelda and Lucy begin reading the journal and discover that it is believed their grandmother, when she was eight, had accidently started the fire that destroyed the school and killed at least seven of the staff and students. The dolls come to life and want revenge by turning Lucy into a doll. Zelda and Lucy must use all their ingenuity to outsmart the dolls and save themselves.

The two sisters are believable with interesting dialogue and word choice. The plot contains an element of the supernatural which is intense and creepy but suitable for the intended audience. The language is very descriptive and adds to the enjoyment of the adventure. The journal entries are realistic to what an eight-year-old would write, including her grammatical errors which add to the authenticity. The fast-paced plot adds to the enjoyment of the story. There are 24 chapters of about five pages each. Each chapter ends at a high point which would make this an excellent read-aloud choice. Night of the Living Dolls is an excellent choice for readers who like adventure, friendship, supernatural and realistic fiction. It would be an excellent addition to any collection.