Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Things were already pretty spooky for Ollie after she rescued an antique book from a weeping, maniacal woman, but when the bus taking her and her classmates home from a school trip to a farm stalls in a dense bank of fog next to a field peppered with creepy scarecrows, it's clear something otherworldly is going on. Heeding the advice appearing in her late mother's digital watch RUN Ollie and a couple of classmates, Jamaican-born Brian and sensitive Coco, escape to the woods, trying to avoid the terrifying, animated scarecrows and find their way back to the farm, which has an eerie connection to the book, a story about a smiling man who makes deadly bargains. In spare, pithy, and evocative language, Arden skillfully cultivates a vivid sense of atmosphere, from Ollie's cozy, welcoming house to the creeping dread of the kids' journey through the ominous, clattering forest. There are genuinely creepy elements here scarecrows in relentless pursuit, ghostly beings lurking in abandoned houses, and a truly surprising villain at the center of it all but Arden doesn't skimp on character development either. Prickly Ollie, who's dealing with the grief of losing her mother, softens toward Brian and Coco, who are each gradually rounded out as well. With a tantalizing pace and palpable suspense, all nicely grounded in realistic emotions, this well-wrought spine-tingler is destined to be a hit (just makes sure the lights stay on).--Sarah Hunter Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Eleven-year-old Ollie lives with her big-hearted baking enthusiast father following the tragic death of her mother, and finds respite from her grief through reading. Her circumstances take a supernatural turn when she encounters a frightening woman attempting to throw a book into the river. When Ollie, drawn to the book, takes it, the woman warns Ollie to "avoid large places at night... keep to small." In its pages, Ollie reads of a long-ago family whose losses led them to make a dreadful pact with a demonic figure known as "the smiling man." And on a class trip to a dairy farm, Ollie and two classmates-with whom she forms a reluctant connection-learn that the smiling man is very real. Arden (The Bear and the Nightingale) shrouds her Halloween-time story in autumnal mists, introducing a sometimes-crowded cast of ominous figures, from ghosts to shapeshifters and scarecrow minions. Ollie is a relatable heroine who finds strength through trusting in friendship, while her ghostly adventures lead her to learn an important truth: sometimes, the best way to honor the memory of a loved one is by moving forward, bravely, and with love. Ages 10-up. Agent: Paul Lucas, Janklow & Nesbit Associates. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-8-After experiencing a terrible loss, Ollie doesn't care about math and softball anymore. She just wants to crawl into a book and ignore everything around her. Which is why when she runs into a woman crying and about to throw a book into the creek, Ollie jumps into action and saves it! The book, Small Spaces, is about a woman named Beth, the Webster brothers who wanted to marry her, and the disappearance of one of the brothers after he makes a horrible bargain with the smiling man. Ollie's fascinated, especially the next day when her class visits a farm and the crying woman is the farm's owner. Ollie also sees the Websters' headstones at the farm cemetery! Is the story real? And why would the bus driver tell her to avoid large spaces and keep to small ones at night? When the bus breaks down and it starts to get dark, Ollie must decide whether to listen to her teacher, her peers, the bus driver, or her broken watch which is now telling her to run. Renee Dorian's pacing and inflection sets the mood and keeps the story moving. VERDICT This is a must-have for all libraries because of the authentic and multidimensional characters and the satisfying mystery. It is an excellent audio choice for students who enjoy creepy tales.-Mariela Siegert, Westfield Middle School, Bloomingdale, IL © Copyright 2019. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Adult author Ardens first book for middle-graders is an original, super-scary tale set in contemporary rural Vermont. Sixth grader Ollie is still reeling from the death of her beloved mother. When she has a strange encounter with a distressed woman and retrieves the book the woman is trying to discard, Ollie finds herself captivated by its tale of two brothers; Beth, the woman they love; and a sinister smiling man. On a school field trip the next day, a series of eerie mishaps strands Ollie and a busload of her classmates near a farm exactly like the one in the book. Only two other studentssensitive Coco and popular Brianbelieve her when she insists they are all in danger. Ollie knows that the smiling mans army of once-human scarecrows can attack them if theyre found out in the open (she has been told to stick to small spaces), and the entire class is doomed to be the victims of an age-old bargain unless Ollie, Coco, and Brian can save them. Over the course of their adventure, the three help one another to overcome their fears and to learn to trust. Ardens child characters display a mix of wisdom and immaturity, making them both likable and believable. The terrifying scarecrows and the tragic tale of Beth and the brothers make this supernatural thriller a page-turner, but its Ollies journey through grief and into friendship that makes it memorable. sarah berman (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A girl steals a book and is swept up in its eerie origins. It's October in East Evansburg, Vermont, and Olivia "Ollie" Adler finds herself distracted from her sixth-grade lessons. She's reeling from the pain of her mother's absence, but she'd rather bottle it up than talk about it. Instead, Ollie escapes into books and reads them at her secret swimming hole. One day, a strange woman attempts to cast a book titled Small Spaces into the water. Ollie steals the book and is given a warning: "Avoid large places at night.Keep to small." Soon she is wrapped up in the book's haunting story of loss and a deal made with a being known as "the smiling man." A class field trip to Misty Valley Farm reveals the truth behind Small Spaces. Can Ollie save her classmates from the smiling man? Or will she, too, succumb to the lure of one of his bargains? The characters are sharply drawn, particularly Ollie and her quirky, bighearted father; one secondary character, black, Jamaican-born Brian, stands out in their mostly white community. The slow reveal of Ollie's trauma is achingly poignant (her mother's death isn't confirmed until nearly halfway through the book). Some elements seem less plausible than others (her teacher leaving kids alone with a creepy bus driver, for instance), but novelist for adults Arden's (The Bear and the Nightingale, 2017) middle-grade debut is atmospheric horror at its best. Chillingly tender. (Horror. 8-13) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
