Title The Phantom of the Auditorium Series Goosebumps [#24] Author R.L. Stine Cover Art --- Publisher Scholastic Inc. - 1994 First Printing --- Category Middle Grade Warnings None Main Characters Brooke, Zeke Main Elements Ghosts

Lights...Curtain...Phantom?

Brooke's best friend, Zeke, had been given the lead role in the school play, The Phantom. Zeke's totally into it. He loves dressing up in the grotesque phantom costume. And scaring the other members of the cast. Brooke thinks Zeke's getting a little too into it.

But then really scary things start happening. A message appears on a piece of scenery: "The Phantom Strikes!" A stage light comes crashing down.

Is someone trying to ruin the play?

Or is there really a phantom living under the stage?

I never liked the Goosebumps series, I was probably in or just out of high school when it became a big thing among elementary school students. Yes, at least kids were reading, but there are much better books out there. This story is loosely based on the Phantom of the Opera (the reason why I bought it), yet different enough that you won't figure out the ending. Well, unless you do figure it out, after all, there's only two characters who could be the phantom. My suggestion is, give your kids Harry Potter or a multitude of other books, you'll find they're able to grasp more complex language and plots than this series gives them credit for.