The Park Gates
Bright lights blink over the park entrance and the smell of popcorn drifts from the midway. Beyond the ticket booth, the great wooden tracks of the roller coaster rise against the evening sky.
READING GUIDE
The Roller Coaster Ghost
by Fran Manushkin · This is YOUR Story — You Decide What Happens Next
About the book
This interactive story invites young readers to Coney Island, where they choose what happens next on a ghostly roller coaster adventure. As they decide the path, children explore a famous seaside setting full of rides, lights, and spooky surprises. It is a playful way to build reading confidence and decision-making skills.
Why kids love it
The choose-your-own-adventure format keeps children engaged and rereading to discover different outcomes. It supports prediction, cause-and-effect thinking, and lively discussion about choices and consequences. The Coney Island setting adds a fun, real-world backdrop that can spark curiosity about landmarks and local history.
Step into the world of The Roller Coaster Ghost
The Midway
The midway hums with lights and music. A storyteller sits on a bench with a book full of ribbons, and the fortune teller's tent glows purple across the path.
The Roller Coaster Station
The station platform shakes gently as the next car rolls in. The big lever waits by the track, and a warning sign glows in the lamplight. From here, the first hill looks very high indeed.
Sample questions
Here is the kind of thinking The Roller Coaster Ghost asks for — drawn from the actual quiz:
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In this book, YOU are the hero and you choose what happens next.
The tagline promises it: 'This is YOUR story, YOU decide what happens NEXT.'
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What makes this book different from an ordinary story?
You decide what happens next — the story follows your choices.
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The reader's choices change the way the story goes.
Each choice leads down a different path.
Words to know
- roller coaster
- A fast amusement park ride that travels up, down, and around a track.
- ghost
- A spooky spirit that some people believe appears after someone dies.
- Coney Island
- A famous beach and amusement area in New York known for its boardwalk and rides.
- boardwalk
- A wooden path built along a beach for walking and enjoying the view.
- decision
- A choice you make about what to do next.
- amusement park
- A place with rides, games, and treats for people to enjoy.
- spooky
- Something that feels a little scary or mysterious.
- adventure
- An exciting experience full of surprises and new things.
Talk about it
What choice did you make first, and how did it change the story?
How do the characters feel about the ghost on the roller coaster?
If you could add one more choice to the story, what would it be?
What makes Coney Island a good setting for a spooky story?
Have you ever had to make a tricky decision? What did you do?
Which ending did you like best, and why?
Play the full quiz
Answer fast, earn coins, and follow your student journey through The Roller Coaster Ghost.
Play The Roller Coaster Ghost