Mandie and the Charleston Phantom
Mandie #7
by Lois Gladys Leppard

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Children’s Christian historical fiction

I read a lot of this series when I was a kid/pre-teen, and I read some of them to my now-teen daughter when she was younger. Nostalgia definitely affects my reviews for this series, and I’m okay with that.

Most of my issues with the previous books in the series have to do with Mandie’s attitude or actions and sketchy theology (there was a bit of that here too). This time, my biggest issue is just the super weak plot. It’s obvious the entire time who’s behind the “ghost,” and the reasoning for it ends up being so flimsy, it’s easier to believe that the culprit only agreed with the suggested reason because it was at least a little better than just the real motive—plain mean-heartedness. There’s also too much focus on boys liking Mandie, thinking she’s pretty, even wanting to marry her someday, for a book about a 12-year-old girl. I’m sure I thought it was sweet or even romantic when I was a pre-teen, but it could definitely have at least been toned down. While I think these books can still be good for younger people to read, especially if you’re looking for something with Christian content, I strongly recommend discussing what’s good and bad in them with your kid(s) after they read it.

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