The Dollhouse Murders

Weeding has begun. It is NOT a fun part of the job. My method this year? After checking a Titlewave analysis for older titles (and parting with a few favorites that no one ever read), I went down the shelves and looked at the TOP of the books. Were they dusty? Super worn? Stained with unidentifiable substances? Granted, many that fit this description do so because they are still read all the time, but there were a lot that weren't. I plopped a stack of vintage prebound Fear Street books on a table in front of a group of 8th graders and asked if anyone wanted to read them. Pages crackled audibly and started to separate from the spines when the books were opened. The concensus on odor was "They don't smell BAD... but they don't smell GOOD." 

Weeding is necessary. Go weed. 

Wright, Betty Ren. The Dollhouse Murders

First published January 1, 1983 by Scholastic

October 9, 2018 by Holiday House
Library copy

**Spoilers everywhere, so proceed with caution if you haven't seen this in the forty years since it was published.**

Amy is tired of her family; her sister Louann is developmentally delayed, and difficult to take out in public. Her friend Ellen is somewhat understanding, but is starting to pull back from the friendship because hanging out with Amy is not easy or fun. Amy's mother works, which is why Louann's care falls to Amy after school. After a particularly stressful day, Amy runs off to her Aunt Clare's just to get away. Aunt Clare is cleaning out the family home and getting ready to sell it, so asks Amy's parents if Amy can spend some time "keeping her company". While cleaning the attic, Amy finds a dollhouse that Aunt Clare's grandparents had given her when she was fifteen. She was too old by that time to be interested in the dollhouse, and resented it, but there are other reasons she's not thrilled to find this relic of the past. Aunt Clare is a lot older than Amy's father, and has had a difficult life. After the death of both parents, Clare and her brother moved into the old house with their grandparents, but in 1952, both grandparents were brutally murdered in the house while the brother hid in a closet. Soon after, Clare's older boyfriend was killed in a drunk driving accident, and it's always been assumed that he killed the grandparents. Amy and Ellen investigate more about the accident at the library (using microfiche of newspapers!) and later the aunt finds the dolls arranged to imitate the murder scene, she's not happy. In the meantime, Louann is doing well going to a neighbor's house after school, but when the girls mother is called away to help with a family medical emergency out of state, Louann comes to Aunt Clare's as well. Unfortunately, this happens right when Amy is having her 13th birthday party, and the girls fight. Luckily, they are able to figure out the mystery of the dollhouse and put the ghosts to rest. Aunt Clare has closure, and we hope she is able to sell the haunted house and live the rest of her life in peace. 

Strengths: There is a foreword by R.L. Stine, which is a very nice tribute, and the new cover makes this look much more appealing. I feel like the story has been tweaked a little, and Louann's condition isn't really diagnosed; in earlier editions she might have been called "brain damaged". 
Weaknesses: Styles have changed a lot in forty years, and I'm not quite sure how this will resonate with current readers. 

What I really think: I bought thte 35th anniversary edition, but probably shouldn't have. However, it HAS been in constant circulation ever since the copy came in. Even though a lot of people say this scared them when they were young, it doesn't seem scary today. On the upside, it does involve murder, which my students ask for all the time. The new cover helps, as does the length, which is just 150 pages. I'm not sure how doll houses will resonate with today's readers, but certainly the ghosts and family problems will go over well.