Celeste knows she should be excited to spend two weeks at her grandparents' lake house with her brother, Owen, and their cousins Capri and Daisy, but she's not. After failing her swimming lessons, she is done with the water--and she knows the trip is just a way to get her in the lake. Her grandparents are strong believers in their family knowing how to swim, especially having grown up during a time of segregation at public pools. They want Celeste to have the opportunities they never did. Celeste insists on spending her visit on dry land. But soon strange things start happening when she's alone: the sound of footsteps overhead late at night. A flickering light in the attic window. And then Celeste's cousins start accusing her of playing cruel pranks on them when she's been nowhere near them! Things at the old house keep getting scarier until, one evening, Celeste looks in the steamy mirror after a shower and sees her face, but twisted, different. Who is the girl in the mirror? And what does she want?
I am not a fan of scary stories and the only reason I read this one is that it is a Mark Twain Nominee. It wasn't too scary, but still not a favorite. I do think kids aged 8-12 will enjoy it because it has a ghost in it, but it also teaches a lesson about overcoming your fears. This book also teaches about civil rights and why some people say "Black people can't swim". Even though it was a ghost story I did enjoy the main story about the family.
