A friend of mine read this and said she was expecting to be really scared, just like she was when she was young. I didn't have that same expectation, maybe because I had a report from her before I decided to reread. But I did enjoy this ghost story. Although I kind of want to rewrite it for adults. The writing is, well, for kids! Very plain and slow. I wish the writing could have been elevated. I think that I could have enjoyed that, even as a 10-year-old. 
 The step-father, though. UGH! I do not remember hating him or thinking he was a terrible guy, but he was the real villain in this book. The adults in general are awfully childish and awful. That made it really difficult to read. It made it difficult for me to believe the story. Even more difficult than the presence of a cliched ghost.