Sara and the Ghost Clothes - Book 1

Deetjen’s Closet

JUST RELEASED BY COALESCE PRESS!

Deetjen’s Closet is a middle-grade historical fantasy with splashes of magic.

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One girl’s desperate quest to find magic

Two schoolyard troublemakers determined to make her life unbearable

Ten historic ghost clothes with bizarre true stories and offers of help

A hundred different ways this could all go wrong. Or right.

Being the new kid in her fourth-grade class is bad enough. But when the school’s twin troublemakers discover that Sara still secretly believes in magic, they vow to make her life unbearable by outing her to the entire school after winter break. Her only way to stop them is to prove magic exists—and fast!

Help comes from some unusual allies she discovers in a rustic dark closet at mysterious Deetjen’s Big Sur Inn. There, she finds ghosts of clothes eager to tell the true stories of the real historical people who wore them. But that’s not all. They come up with a clever and selfless plan to help Sara—if she has the courage to carry it out.

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Reviews:

“An engaging young hero leads this inventive, intelligently mounted fantasy. …a fascinating original supernatural twist to historical facts, adding real-world substance with coastal travel highlights, a grade-schooler’s relatable issues, and a touch of mystery from the distant past.”—Kirkus Reviews

 “As the first book in a new fantasy series, this will be sure to delight fans of Alice in Wonderland and Chronicles of Narnia.”

—LibraryThing Reviewer

“There’s never been a trip up California’s Highway One from Morro Bay to Watsonville filled with such adventure. An overnight stop at the real Deetjen’s Inn in Big Sur uncovers a series of supernatural encounters with an amazing cast of historical characters—and in the end, it all seems quite natural. What a way to learn history!”

—Dan Krieger, Professor of History, Emeritus at Cal Poly, SLO; author and columnist on California History

—Liz Krieger, Retired Children’s Librarian, San Luis Obispo, California

Read what these 4th grade students at Del Mar Elementary School in Morro Bay, California had to say about Deetjen’s Closet:

“The book really hooks you in and you cannot stop reading...this book is unique. This is literally the best book I have ever read.”

—Cate M.

“I loved that the book was so magical—it even gave me the shivers!”

—EmmaW.

“I think that this book is great for 4th and 5th graders. I really like this book.”

—Ruby B.

“This book is wonderful. I love how there’s so much detail.”

—Hallelujah A.