Being Dead

Rating:
Summary: Not that creepy
Review:
While this book was interesting, it wasn't actually as scary or as 'creepy' as it has been made out to be.

If you're looking for a scary book, look elsewhere.

~Atalanta

Rating:
Summary: Great For Horror Fans
Review: "BEING DEAD" is a collection of 7 short scary stories that touch on the topics of ghosts, cemeteries, murder, suicide, and other death-related subjects. The first story is by far the greatest, and is titled "Drop By Drop." This story is about a 16-year-old named Brenda, who is upset when her parents move her from her life in the city, to a small town, where their house is actually haunted. And "October Chill" is about a terminally ill girl, who falls in love with a ghost from Colonial times.

The stories featured in "BEING DEAD" are not gory, but all of them are quite...dark. But, it's still a great book to read. Especially on those stormy nights, when you're curled up in bed, and you have no idea who, or what, could be lurking around outside.

Erika Sorocco

Rating:
Summary: "Being Dead"
Review: I enjoyed this book a lot and the stories were not all "scare the crap out of you". Some of them were a bit more heartfelt...
Drop by Drop- my favorite story in the book, is about a young girl who is visited by a little ghost girl with a shocking message.
Dancing with Marjorie's Ghost- Another spooky one that illustates the phrase, "Think before you speak."
Shadow Brother- Yet another Goosebumps giver that has the reader guessing, "What really happened?"
The Ghost- a short story with a creepy twist
For Love of Him- Sad, yet scary, this story is about a boy who is misleaded by a tombstone, and its owners.
October Chill- this is one of the more Heartfelt stories that really makes you think what you would do if you have only a few months to live.
Being Dead- heartfelt and comical, this tale is abouta boy in the Great Depression who dies and rightens a few wrongs before passing over.
Overall I was very satisfied with this book and recommend it to all Ghost Story lovers.

Rating:
Summary: good book
Review: I read the book Being Dead by Vivian Vande Velde. This book has seven stories in one book. The first story was the best. It was about a girl named Brenda and her family moving to a small town. When they were unloading boxes, the phone rang. Brenda picked it up. The answer was a bell ringing like the ones on a bicycle. A little voice said,"Help me." and that was all. Brenda's dad came into the house and said,"Brenda, the phone wont be hooked up until Monday."
See how Brenda gets through all the other weird things that is happening to her.

Rating:
Summary: Nice Book
Review: The book "Being Dead" has seven stories that are scary. One of the stories that i like is Drop by Drop. Drop by Drop is about a girl name Brenda who moves to a new town with her parents. The same day that she moved in she goes to the pond in back of her house. Then all of a sudden she sees a hand in the pond and she just jumps in to see if anyone was drowning. But when she jumps in there was nobody in the pond cause it was only 1 1/2 in. long. Brenda kept seeing the goes until she found out that seh killed a gril when she was driving to her friends house. Then it goes on. i recommend that you read this book becuase it's a good book to read at night and you'll never put it down when you start to read it. That's if you like scary stories.

Rating:
Summary: Definitely creepy
Review: These stories were definitely interesting, though I think that my favorite would have to be "Drop by Drop". That one's one of the best ghost stories I've every read, mainly because it gets away from the norm so much; for one thing the ghost isn't a centuries-old ghost, it's a really new one. Plus, the ending will REALLY freak you out. It is SO creepy. "October Chill" is pretty good, too- it's about a girl that has cancer that befriends a ghost.
I think that everyone should read this book, and if you're a fan of ghost stories, it's a definite must.

Rating:
Summary: AN AWESOME HORROR STORY
Review: this book is awesome. it full of seven chilly stories about ghost. vivian is a great and amazing authoess. Each stories has a twist but i t hink Drop by Drop was a pretty twisted story.....the ending will scare everything out of you. each story is different with different meaning. they all are just as spooky as the one before. I loved each one, the good thing is there's a small story in between the big ones so you dont get bored or tired. It keeps you very interested. each story is really good. there great stories to tell at sleepovers and to all your friends on a dark spooky night, lol. Everyone should read this book, its amazing.

Rating:
Summary: great for a rainy day
Review: This is a collection of seven of Vivian Vande Velde's stories, ranging from stories made of eight pages to stories that are sixty pages. They are all quite enjoyable, especially the ones with surprising endings. They are a quick and simple read, I highly recommend the book. Here I'll say a little of each of the stories:
Drop by Drop: this isn't your everyday `there's a ghost in my house with unfinished business' story. Brenda Keehn has just moved into a new house in the middle of nowhere and is receiving mysterious phone calls from a child who supposedly wants help when the phone lines haven't even been set up yet. When Brenda doesn't want to help, the child-ghost tempermentally throws Brenda's clothes off their hangers. Brenda doesn't like the thought of hanging up all her clothes everyday for the rest of her life and so decides to help. And as she starts communicating with the ghost, her story starts to unfold. But does Brenda really want to know the true story?
Dancing with Marjorie's Ghost: For the purpose of appearing brave in front of his neighbors, Conrad Sharpe swears of his regret to his recently dead wife. But his swear is more than it appears.
Shadow Brother: Sarah had always cared for her older brother. He had always been the nice, caring older brother to her: for example, he scared away the dogs who threatened Sarah. He wouldn't come back after his death to haunt the family...would he?
The Ghost: this was (to me) the most puzzling story out of all of them. But still quite enjoyable. College students are planning to rent a supposedly haunted building. But what if the `ghost' doesn't want them there?
For Love of Him: Love isn't what it always seems to be...
October Chill: Emily's dieing. She has inoperable cancer and knows that she'll only last till spring. But her sad days are suddenly brightened when she meets a charming ghost at her work place...
Being Dead: Stewart fell. Stewart fell out of a building window. Stewart fell several floors down. Stewart fell on top of a poor newspaper boy. --> Johnny knew how dangerous it was to cross the street. He looked to the right. The left. In front of him. Behind him. But he had never thought of looking up...

Rating:
Summary: Ghosts and the Living
Review: This is a wonderful collection of ghost stories. Although the collection is titled after the final story, it is more about being alive than being dead. Most of the stories deal with hard issues as well as the ghost. The stories are as follows.

Drop By Drop - A 16-year-old has to put up with her family's move from city to country. To make it worse, the ghost of a young girl is trying to tell her something.
Dancing With Marjorie's Ghost - Beware of what you promise the dead.
Shadow Brother - A young girl has to deal with her brother reluctantly going to war in Viet Nam.
The Ghost - Students move into a house that was the scene of a murder. The ghost has different ideas.
For Love Of Him - A boy becomes fascinated with a tombstone for two lovers who died two days apart. He seems to get sucked into their history.
October Chill - A girl dying of cancer discovers she can see a ghost at the museum where she works.
Being Dead - At the start of the Great Depression, a young paperboy gets killed when a jumper lands on him. He can move on but decides to straighten out a few things first.

I was pleased by all of these stories. The author shows a real sensitivity to the plights of the characters. The collection is split in the middle by the almost humorous "The Ghost" which is far less serious than the three stories before or after it. Check it out.

Rating:
Summary: Ghosts and the Living
Review: This is a wonderful collection of ghost stories. Although the collection is titled after the final story, it is more about being alive than being dead. Most of the stories deal with hard issues as well as the ghost. The stories are as follows.

Drop By Drop - A 16-year-old has to put up with her family's move from city to country. To make it worse, the ghost of a young girl is trying to tell her something.
Dancing With Marjorie's Ghost - Beware of what you promise the dead.
Shadow Brother - A young girl has to deal with her brother reluctantly going to war in Viet Nam.
The Ghost - Students move into a house that was the scene of a murder. The ghost has different ideas.
For Love Of Him - A boy becomes fascinated with a tombstone for two lovers who died two days apart. He seems to get sucked into their history.
October Chill - A girl dying of cancer discovers she can see a ghost at the museum where she works.
Being Dead - At the start of the Great Depression, a young paperboy gets killed when a jumper lands on him. He can move on but decides to straighten out a few things first.

I was pleased by all of these stories. The author shows a real sensitivity to the plights of the characters. The collection is split in the middle by the almost humorous "The Ghost" which is far less serious than the three stories before or after it. Check it out.