Spirit Week (Family Comic Friday)

I did what experts say not to do. I judged a book by its cover. This book...

A couple of weeks ago, I was in the kids section of my local library looking for new books to read for my weekly Family Comic Friday post. That's when I came across this book. From just a quick look, this graphic novel looked spooky, had snow on the cover and bore an eerie looking font that looked an awful lot like the poster to Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. Little did I know that there was a whole lot more to that cursory opinion.

Upon further inspection of the cover, you'll notice that a room key and a typewriter are partially buried in ice. There's an ominous looking hotel peering down at a group of young people. And the sky is a familiar orange color, like that of the carpeting of the Overlook Hotel. This really might be The Shining for kids!

So what is Spirit Week about? Is it Stephen King's first young readers book? Or is there something more to this book?

Suzy is a middle school student who hopes to become an engineer when she grows up. She's a current reigning State champion in an engineering competition for teens and needs to raise some money in order to defend her title. Even if it means doing something really scary. 

Suzy's hometown of Estes Park, Colorado has one main attraction: the gigantic Underlook Hotel. The property of reclusive author Jack Axworth, this establishment was the setting of the writer's most popular horror novel, 'The Underlooker'. Fans from all over the world come to Estes Park for a chance to tour the supposed haunted lodge. They want to relive scenes from the book. But above all, they hope to catch a glimpse of the reluctant novelist.

Recently, Jack Axworth announced that he and his son, Danny, would be leaving the Underlook and that a demolition team would be destroying the site. In the week before he leaves the Underlook, Danny needs to pass an entrance exam to his new school and that's where Suzy comes in. She's been invited to stay at the hotel for the final week in hopes of getting Danny ready for his tests. 

Also along for the ride is young filmmaker Elijah Jones. He's been invited to help document the last days of the Overlook Hotel. Seeing how important the attraction is to her town, Suzy along with Elijah, Danny and caretaker Rena hope to convince Jack to reconsider. But the author claims he must destroy the place in order to break an evil curse. What mysteries will Suzy and her new friends uncover during the waning days of the Underlook Hotel?

Spirit Week started off so well. Author Ira Marcks (Shark Summer) posted a foreword thanking his parents for exposing him to the 1980's horror flick. There's a great mystery building. A mysterious stranger stalks the grounds of the hotel. And the promise of a broken curse which could save the town. It all makes for an engrossing read with a fairly decent ending that looks rather rosy. That is until you start thinking about what happens AFTER the book ends.

It's revealed that Jack Axworth has a form of early onset dementia. He seems to get better at the end, coming to terms with the things he felt cursed him. But if the author really has some sort of cognitive degeneration, isn't things going to go poorly not just for him, but Jack's young son, Danny. 

Danny Axworth can't be older than 10. So, I would imagine that by the time the young graduates high school, his father probably won't recognize him anymore. Was Jack misdiagnosed? Was his supposedly loss of memory due to something else like grief or guilt? If so, that's great. But Ira Marcks doesn't make such knowledge clear. And thus, I was left a little bummed with things. 

Another thing about this book that bugged me was yet another missing detail. This story takes place during Suzy's winter break. Winter Break is Christmas time, right? Well, there's not 1 single Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa decoration in the entire town. Sure, Estes Park has devoted itself to being an attraction for horror enthusiasts. But surely, the townsfolk celebrate the winter holidays, right?

Spirit Week had a great spooky tone. It's a great homage to the horror legacy of both Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick. But there's several missing pieces to this puzzle that makes for an uneven story with a not so fairytale happy ending. Maybe Ira Mancks is planning a sequel.  Or maybe a companion story that continues Suzy's story while letting us in or an update on Jack and Danny. One things for sure, Spirit Week didn't feel like it was a story that only took 7 days to tell. 

(Note- Upon further research, I learned that Spirit Week is a sequel to Shark Summer, so I may be on to something about the story not being over.)

Recommended for readers ages 8-12, Spirit Week is a book that will lead readers down several dead ends wrong turns - just like the hedge labyrinth on the grounds of the Underlook. Parents may need to explain to young readers what dementia is. Plus a few scenes might be a little too intense. It's a good read but it definitely seems incomplete.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.