Welcome to Litsy!

“'Quick!' hissed Cora, grabbing him and roughly pulling him down the stairs. They crouched there in the darkness, just out of view...“

I would use this book with older elementary (4-5) students to explore the aspects of a mystery fiction novel. I want to expose my students to new genres that they may have never read before and educate them on which specific aspects of the story quality it as a mystery or adventure book. I also think this would be a good book to use in a book club, as mystery books help students pose lots of questions and wonders about what will happen next.

“Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing“ is a mystery fiction book, which also contains adventure elements, under the realm of speculative fiction. This book is considered a mystery book due to its incorporation of ghosts, the Afterworld, and Embassy of the Dead. It uses elements of adventure when Jake and Cora must figure out what is causing the problem when they realize there is a plot to destroy the fabric between the worlds of living and dead

“It's unlocked! said Jake, peering cautiously into the darkness. It was empty. Whoever had left the footprint was long gone.“

Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing is a humorous ghost story/ adventure fiction. This is fun to have in the classroom because it takes the students on a silly and thrilling journey through the afterworld. This can help teach the students about bravery, problem-solving, and resilience.

Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing by Will Mabbitt is a speculative fictional novel that was published in 2019. It is about Jake who is now employed by the Embassy of the Dead, where he is in charge of assisting people in “crossing over.“ However, things become complex when Harry and his ghostly buddy Cora learn of a sinister scheme to rip the threads connecting the worlds of the living and the dead. Can Jake and Cora end world hunger?

“But weirdly, as a side effect, The Embassy of the Dead had made him an undoer- someone who helps ghosts resolve their unfinished business on the Earthly Plane so they can continue with their journey to the Afterworld.“

Every dangerous situation in this book is ended fairly easily and with care. This is an easy read that would be great for young students. This could be read during silent reading time in the classroom.

Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing was written by Will Mabbitt and illusrtated by Taryn Knight. It published in 2018. This book is part of a speculative fiction series. It is the second book of the series and is about a character named Jake who must journey even deeper into the mysterious world of ghosts. This is an adventurous fiction book and is also a ghost story.

“Hurry. I fear we may already be too late...“

This would be good for students in grades 3-7. For younger students, it would be good as a read-aloud to do throughout the fall. You could practice making predictions with the students as you read each chapter.

Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing follows the main character Jake as he tries to uncover who in the Embassy is trying to eliminate the separation from the worlds of the living and the dead. Jake recently found out that he can see ghosts and was given a job in the Embassy of the Dead as an Undoer, which helps ghosts complete their unfinished business. The book is a humous ghost story that follows a mystery.

“He had accidentally discovered he could see ghosts and had subsequently been sucked into the world of the Embassy of the Dead.“

This book would be great for students in 4th or 5th grade not only for the reading level but also just because of the overall theme that there are dead people and ghosts as main characters. I think this book does a great job of including enough humor that students will really enjoy. Also, I think this book would be great as a read-aloud done with the class- maybe a chapter or two a day.

“Embassy of the Dead: Hangman's Crossing“ is considered speculative fiction because a lot of the book takes place in the afterlife with the characters being ghosts. It also has a lot of humor which can cut the “scary“ parts out of being about the afterlife and dead people. It also makes it speculative fiction because of how it switches between different time periods to get different perspectives on how multiple events will eventually overlap.