The Vanishing Vampire

Gr 4–6—While walking home from the movies, Sebastian blacks out. The next morning, he feels different. Sounds are louder. Smells are stronger. Sunlight burns him, yet he heals quickly. He has no reflection in the mirror. All the garlic-soaked evidence points to one thing-somehow, he has become a vampire. He enlists his brainy friend, Norman, to help him look for answers. He especially needs a quick solution for his growing hunger that is not satisfied by raw steak, ground-up-liver smoothies, or any of the other concoctions the two boys come up with. When Sebastian tracks down the vampire that turned him, he learns that his condition may not be permanent. He has a small window of time during which he can become completely human again, if he could just figure out how. The pacing and action are right on. Add a couple of school bullies and a vampire hunter and you have a recipe that's just right for light-horror fans. Vanishing Vampire is a revised version of the 1997 Scholastic title of the same name, and it features new art. Libraries owning the earlier edition might want to consider updating.—Kelly Roth, Bartow County Public Library, Cartersville, GA