Spirit Sleuths: How Magicians and Detectives Exposed the Ghost Hoaxes
by Gail Jarrow
Middle School, High School    Calkins/Astra    176 pp.
9/24    9781662680236    $24.99
e-book ed.  9781662680243    $14.99

Narrative nonfiction veteran Jarrow (recently American Murderer, rev. 9/22) digs into the history of the greedy hucksters and charlatans who defrauded naive and grieving people for decades, as spiritualism began in the mid-1800s and gained popularity in the postwar periods that followed. The book shows how these mediums employed parlor tricks and sleight of hand to deceive seance-sitters into believing the dead could communicate from beyond the grave. Each rise in the practice’s popularity brought renewed skepticism, with a curious alliance of journalists, magicians, scientists, and detectives working diligently to convince the public that mediums were merely con artists. The book spends much of its time with famed magician and escape artist Harry Houdini, who used his expertise and experience to disprove mediums’ deceptions, performing their tricks himself during his touring shows. This intriguing deep dive into an underexplored period of history shows readers how obvious lies can cement into passionately held beliefs that can stand up to scrutiny if the believer is sufficiently motivated. Frequent visuals include photographs and advertisements; “How Did They Do It?” sections detail mediums’ secret methods. The thorough back matter includes a timeline, a glossary, additional resources, an author’s note, source notes, an extensive bibliography, and an index.

From the ">November/December 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.