Essay/Term paper: Spook (book report)

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Research Papers

SPOOK

Mary Ann Nelson has never been to school. She is fifteen years old. Her and her mother, Muriel live in an old house. No one has ever seen what Mary Ann looks like in years because she always wears a hood to cover her face. The other children used to make fun of her. They called her the "Spook".
An educator comes to town. Her name is Lola Aragon. She hears of Mary Ann and wants to help her. Lola wants to get Mary Ann into school. But she has to hurry because by law after Mary Ann turns sixteen she can't be forced to go to school.
Lola and Her friend, Deputy Ross Walker, go to Mary Ann's house to see if she is alright and also to see if she is educated. when they arrive at the house Muriel comes out with a shotgun and asks them what they want. They tell her that they just want to check on her daughter. Muriel insists that Mary Ann is fine. After a lot of arguing Muriel lets Lola and Ross in. The house is a mess, there are boxes of books everywhere and everything is covered in dust. Mary Ann is locked in her room. Muriel will not let Mary Ann come out to talk to Lola and Ross. But Muriel asks Mary Ann a few questions to prove that she is educated. Mary Ann answers all of the questions successfully. then Lola and Muriel get into an argument about what is fair for Mary Ann. Muriel tells Lola and Ross to leave. They do so with no argument.
That night when Muriel left to go shopping Mary Ann went out for a walk. She came across a camp and went in. While she was in there a teenaged boy saw her and called all of his friends over to see her. Mary ann ran. When she returned home her mother was still not home. Later that night two men came to see Mary Ann. They shot the Nelson's dogs. Then they walked down the long driveway. Mary Ann saw them and told them to go away or she would call the dogs. They told her that the dogs were all dead. The men entered the house through the basement. One thing they didn't know is that there was another dog in the basement. the dog killed one of the men. The other man managed to escape. He ran down the driveway and into the van. he started the van and sped down the road to the nearest house. he turned towards the driveway but missed and went into the ditch and flipped upside down. The van collided with a parked car in the driveway. The owner of the car came out and told his wife to call an ambulance and the police.
On Muriel's way home she passed the crash on her bicycle. She saw the dead dogs on her way up the driveway, but she didn't stop because she was worried about Mary Ann. When Muriel arrived home Mary Ann came out and told her the whole story and showed her the dead body. When Muriel heard the police sirens she ordered her daughter to go into the woods and run. When the police arrived at the house they ordered Muriel to come out of the house with her hands up. As she was coming out of the house one of the police officers spotted a gun and began shotting at Muriel, she died soon after.
Some of the police Officers went after Mary Ann into the woods. They didn't spot her until the next morning, the helicopter piolet spotted her. The policemen in the helicopter told her to surrender and they would not harm her. Mary Ann ran again, she ran as fast as she could. They lost sight of her. Then not much long after they found her trail again, but lost it again.
Later that night Lola convinced Ross to sleep over with her in the Nelson's barn. Mary Ann came to the barn when Lola and Ross were sleeping. Lola woke up because she heard something moving. She woke Ross up and handed him the pistol without saying a word. A shadow drew nearer to them. Lola called out Mary Ann's name, there was no response. Lola then told Mary Ann that her and Ross have been waiting for her because they were worried about her. Finally Mary Ann spoke, she asked where her mama was. Lola didn't answer. Then Mary Ann asked what her name was. Lola told her and she also told her that her mother had been shot. Lola asked Mary Ann how they could help her. She told them that they could kill her so that she could be with her mother again. Lola and Ross told her that they would not kill her. Lola hugged Mary Ann and rocked her in her arms. Ross turned on the lantern. He was surprised at the sight of Mary Ann, she was beautiful.
Mary Ann went to live with her father, a doctor in the town. Mary Ann went to school and was very happy living there.


Lola and Ross go to Mary Ann's house to see if she is alright and to see if she is educated. They finally get inside after a lot of arguing with Muriel. Mary Ann is in her room and Muriel will not let Ross and Lola go in. But Muriel asks Mary Ann a few questions, like say and spell all the months of the year. Mary Ann answers all of the questions successfully. Muriel and Lola get into an argument about what is fair for Mary Ann. This conflict is finally resolved when Lola and Ross leave the Nelson house.
Another conflict is when two men break into the Nelson house when Mary Ann is home alone. They kill the dogs. Then they go into the basement where they are attacked by another dog that they didn't know was there. This conflict is resolved when the dog kills one of the men and the other man manages to get away alive, but injured badly.
The last conflict is when Lola and Ross finally meet Mary Ann. Mary Ann returns home after along night of being chased by the police. Lola and Ross are sleeping in the Nelson's barn when Mary Ann comes in. They told Mary Ann that they were there to help her. This conflict is finally resolved when Mary Ann agrees to let Lola and Ross help her. They take her to live with her father, Dr. Endicott. Mary Ann is very happy living here.


One event which is of major importance is when Lola comes to town and hears of Mary Ann and wants to help her. This is important because Mary Ann did need help. If Lola didn't come to town Mary Ann might be dead because Muriel was very abusive towards her. Nobody else seemed to care about Mary Ann other than Lola.
Another event in the story that is important is when the men break into the Nelson house. This is important because if they hadn't broke in then the police would have never cared about Muriel and Mary Ann. Muriel would still be alive and she would still be abusing Mary Ann.
The third and last important event in the story is when Ross and Lola slept overnight in the Nelson's barn. This is important because Lola got to help Mary Ann. Now Mary Ann is living in a safe and secure environment. Also she has a future to look forward to because now she is going to school. If it wasn't for Lola, Mary Ann could possibly be dead.


I would recommend this book for others to read. But only if you like books full of suspense and mystery. This book was scary and it has many surprises. The end is not what you would expect at all. In my opinion this book was one of the best books that I've ever read. When I was reading it I couldn't put it down. Before reading this book I had never read any of Steve Vance's books, but later in the future I hope to read more.