Rating: 
Summary: One Scarey Dream!!
Review: Skeleton Man is the most frightening children's book I have read to date. No doubt, students in grades 4-6 and older must devour it when they find it. It's a "wide-eyed, page turner."
Without the story's fascinating background in Native American folklore and the tenacity of its protagonist, "Orphan Molly," the disturbing horror of this child's parents' circumstances as a supplement to this goblin tale could be criticized as gratuitous. I was left wondering if it is really appropriate for children as audience? Yes, I think so. If you are skeptical, just recall traditional literature like Little Red Riding Hood or even Peter Rabbit--truly scary stuff.
Written in the first person, the monologue can be stifling. Characterization is unusually flat for the setting of present day. There is hardly any dialogue. You feel too trapped in Molly's mind. With folktale as springboard for the story, I wonder if this was intentional by the author? Revelation can be precisely controlled without dialogue. The reader doesn't actually know until the climax whether "Mr.Goblin" will remain magical or turn real. Yet more interaction--at least between Molly and Mr. Goblin--might have made it even more suspenseful and chilling! Some story elements such as references to TV personalities and the handiness of workers' tools border on being corny and too contrived.
Last, perhaps the most enduring mystery--the fault of the editor/publisher--is the identity of the illustrator. The oversight is just plain cheap.
Given these shortcomings from the perspective of an adult, Skeleton Man is still high drama. Your fingers cannot keep pace in turning the pages for your eyes as you read. It's a worthwhile escape.
..."An' the Gobble-uns'll gits you ef'n you Don't Watch Out!"
(Lil Orhpan Annie by James Whitcomb Riley)
Rating:
Summary: Solid story
Review: A nice, very well-plotted little story about a resourceful girl who must use to wits, and her Native American heritage, to unravel the mystery of a creepy old man who takes her in after her parents disappear. Much "horror" literature for kids is, frankly, pretty bad. This is a nice exception!
Rating:
Summary: Spine Tingling Tale
Review: Do you enjoy chilling stories? If so, _Skeleton Man_ is a spine tingling must read for you. The story is fast paced and one the reader will have a hard time putting down. Boys and girls alike will enjoy this suspenseful tale. _Skeleton Man_ by Joseph Bruchac is a Native American legend with a traditional story twist told through the eyes of Molly. Molly leads a fairly normal life until her parents suddenly disappear. The story is an eerie tale of her life since her parents' disappearance. She is convinced that her parents are still alive, but is not sure exactly where they are or why they have abandoned her. Molly is sent to live with a man who supposedly is her "uncle" even though she has never met him and whom she has very uneasy feelings about. Her "uncle" actually reminds her of an old Native American legend about a "Skeleton Man" that her father once told her about. Throughout the story Molly also has dreams that seem to be warning her of impending dangers. Molly is a very likable, down to earth character to which the reader will definitely develop a special bond. Molly is also a very strong, but lonely girl with seemingly no one to trust until she finally confides in a teacher at school. In the end, Molly musters enough courage to plan an escape, but will it be in time to save her parents? Caution to young readers: this book is recommended for ages 10 and up. I would definitely stay within those guidelines. The story gets a bit gruesome in the description of "Skeleton Man's" eating habits in the first chapter. The book is quite scary, but fun. I enjoyed Molly's spunk and the illustrations scattered throughout the book were an added plus as well. Pick up a copy of _Skeleton Man_ today for some hair-raising excitement where the "terror builds on every page".
Rating: 
Summary: Skeleton Man a review by Chris
Review: Have you ever awakened and you couldn't find your parents? That's what happened to Emily, the protagonist in the exciting mystery Skeleton Man by Joseph Bruchac. She was home for about three days. Then reporters came and told Emily to live with her uncle. She faces adventure, weird dreams, and the Skeleton Man.
One of my favorite parts was how Emily kills the Skeleton Man at the end, but I can't tell you that. Another one of my favorite parts is when Emily was in her first dream. She is in the forest and she finds a talking rabbit.
One of the events is when Emily is running from the Skeleton Man with the talking rabbit. They're not in modern times. They're in time when Indians are around. Emily is wearing a moccasin and running throughout the woods. They run and run and they can hear the Skeleton Man right behind them! There's a river ahead and they see a tree that fell over the river. Then, the Skeleton Man comes over the hill. They start over the log. Suddenly, he lunged across the log. Then Emily began to push the log into the river. The Skeleton Man fell in and made a loud and long scream. Emily woke up before he hit the river.
Another part is when she finds her parents but I can't tell you that yet. You have to find that out for your self. So I invite and encourage you to read Skeleton Man.
Rating:
Summary: inside the skelleton man
Review: I like this book because it was easy to understand what was happening in it. Some parts of this book had somethings to do with real life. there is one part of the book that i like the most. it is when she had one dream thet her uncle was a skelleton man and she was running away. A rabbit helped her. And lator in the book the same thing happended she was chased by her uncle who was the skelleton man. the same rabbit help her. I like this book because what heppens in the book could happen in real life . Someone can destroy some ones life. When I started reading this book after the first chapter I didn't want to stop reading it because it is so good that I wanted to know how the story was going to end.
Rating:
Summary: Scary
Review: I normally don't like reading fokelore, but I loved this book. It was very suspensful, and a little bit scary. One of my favorite things about it was how Molly's teacher was always quoting from musicals. I couldn't put this book down, and I wish it had been longer.
Rating:
Summary: comparable to Gaiman's Coraline, only better
Review: I remember reading the skeleton man myth (or something very similar) when I was a child. The chilling memory of the myth stayed with me for 25+ years and was immediately recognizable in this story by Joseph Bruchac. He has done a masterful job of intertwining the myth and modern story, giving the novel a depth that is unusual for children's literature. Perhaps this is what makes the story so scary--the sense of believability that he manages to create. For those who have read Coraline, you will find the plot lines similar. However, as much as I like Gaiman's work, his version lacks the underlying background to give his story the level of depth and reality found in Skeleton Man. Perhaps children with weaker stomachs would find Coraline to be a gentler scare.
Rating:
Summary: Creeps me out!!!
Review: If you buy this book, prepare to have nightmares! It is both scary and good! BUY IT (just don't read it late at night)!
Rating:
Summary: My-So-Called-Uncle! By Jordan in Mrs. Corners class
Review: Joseph bruchac is a native American writer who draws on his Abenaki ancestry, and the lands around the Adirondacks to spin his wonderful tales. Although his American Indian heritage is only one part of an ethnic background that includes Slovak and English blood, those Native roots are the ones by which he has been most nourished.
In Skeleton Man, Bruchac delves into an ancient Mohawk Indian legend of the Skeleton Man, who devours himself and everyone around him. In this story, a girl named Molly is forced to live with a creepy great uncle she never knew about before. The man is bony and pale and she is immediately reminded of the Skeleton Man legend, a tale her father once told her about. At night she is locked in her room and haunted by a voice in her dreams. She suspects that his uncle may really be the Skeleton Man but how does she escape?
Bruchac carefully builds up the tension and terror for the young girl as the book goes on. Molly, a thoroughly modern adolescent, embraces her Native American heritage and uses it to help her solve the mystery of her parents disappearance and the escalating terror of life in her uncle's house. Bruchac keeps the story moving briskly from beginning to end.
A marvelously intelligent and creepy storyline for young readers. In Molly, Bruchac has eschewed the stereotypical female characters and given us a smart, resourceful young lady. Scared yes, but able to deal with her situation and use her wits to escape.
Rating:
Summary: Things that go "thump thump thump" in the night
Review: Joseph Bruchac skillfully mixes a worrying modern-day scenario with an old Native American legend -- and produces an enduring spinechiller. Fans of legends, scary beasties, and strong heroines will find a fun read here. Molly is having difficulties -- though her life is pretty normal, one Sunday she wakes up to find that her parents are missing. They haven't been found, no one knows where they are, but Molly is sure that they're alive and going to return. Social Services isn't as convinced as she is, and she ends up in the care of a formerly unknown great-uncle. Only problem is, this great-uncle (who is never named in the book) gives her a strange feeling. He's tall, bony, and sinister -- reminding her of an old legend about the carnivorous Skeleton Man, who tried to catch and devour his niece, before she was helped by a talking rabbit. Her sense of foreboding grows stronger. She suspects that he's drugging her food and locking her door; strange dreams are haunting her, in which her stick-thin uncle wants her "fattened up." Frightened and unable to get help (others consider her too imaginative), Molly must escape the clutches of what she suspects to be the Skeleton Man. Frightening? You bet. Bruchac has good insight into the mind of a frightened, lonely young girl, but one with guts, initiative, and imagination. Molly is a heroine that kids -- especially girls -- will be totally sympathetic to. The rabbit is both sufficiently real and otherworldly, while "my uncle" displays sinister malice without any cheap tricks. It permeates every scene he's in. The writing is fast-paced and devoid of "dead spots," descriptions are highly evocative, and Bruchac displays dry wit in all the right places ("I don't need some furry Oprah Winfrey to tell me I need to get my spiritual act in order"). This book is pretty short -- only 114 pages -- and sometimes felt like it could use a little more length and buildup. There is also a lack of noticeable supporting characters, and I wish that Molly had gotten a best friend to bounce ideas off of. The inner illustrations (can't find the name of whoever did them) are soft-edged and slightly surreal. Overall, an effective spinetingler that will not allow you to hear heavy footsteps without thinking "Skeleton Man!"
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