The Ghost Catcher

Posted by Elizabeth Yetter Jul 20, 2008

The Ghost Catcher by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss (August House, ISBN: 0-87483-835-5) is a charming folktale from India. Written for young children, ages 4 to 8, The Ghost Catcher entertains and fires up the imagination.

A barber in Bengal loves to cut hair and trim beards, and for each story a customer tells, he gives a free haircut. But while the barber’s heart is filled with goodness, his home hasn’t enough food to feed his family.

One day his wife tells him that she can no longer live so poorly. The barber must leave and not return home until he has food and money to feed their family. So off the barber goes.

The barber decides to travel to the next town because he believes he would feel more comfortable taking the money for haircuts from strangers instead of his regular customers.

When night falls, the barber stretches out under a banyan to rest until morning. As he starts to drift off to sleep, a ghost appears and decides the barber would make a tasty meal.

Quickly, the barber gets to his feet and tells the ghost that he is a ghost catcher. He shows the ghost its reflection in the mirror as proof that he has already caught an ugly ghost.

Terrified, the not-so-smart ghost promises to do whatever the barber asks of it.

As a story of wit and charm, The Ghost Hunter is a favorite folktale that children will want to hear over and over again. The simplicity of the folk tale, as well as the cunning barber who quickly outthinks his predicament, plays itself over and over again in the imagination.

This is a great book for reading out loud to groups and for class discussion.