Jane Cammack's "The Mystery of Manor Hall" is a popular graded reader, particularly in the Oxford Bookworms Library series (often at a Starter or A1 level), designed for beginning English language learners. It's a simple, engaging story with a touch of the supernatural.
Here's a summary of the
plot:
The story features two
young characters, Tom and Milly, who are staying at their Uncle
Henry's old and rather dark house, called Manor Hall. The house has
a long-standing mystery: there's a specific room, the music room, that
is always locked. Uncle Henry has given strict instructions that nobody is
allowed to go into the music room.
One night, Tom and Milly
are awake and suddenly hear something very strange. They hear singing coming
from inside the locked music room. The sound is unexpected and eerie,
making them feel a mix of fear and curiosity.
Despite being scared,
their curiosity gets the better of them. They decide to investigate and manage
to open the door to the music room. Inside, they find the source of the
singing: it's coming from a magic painting within the room. The singing
voice belongs to Billy Bones, who turns out to be the ghost of a pirate
trapped inside the painting.
Billy Bones explains his
predicament to Tom and Milly. He's unhappy and wishes to be free from the
painting. He tells them that he needs to be near the sea, as that's where a
pirate belongs.
Tom and Milly, feeling
sympathetic, come up with a solution. They offer to take the painting to their new
house, which is by the sea. By moving the painting to a location near the
ocean, they believe they can help Billy Bones.
The story concludes with
Tom and Milly successfully moving the painting to their seaside home. This
action frees Billy Bones from his supernatural confinement within Manor Hall,
thus solving the long-standing mystery of the house and bringing peace to the
old music room.
The charm of "The
Mystery of Manor Hall" lies in its simple, direct language, its mild
suspense, and the satisfying resolution of a seemingly scary mystery. It's
designed to be an accessible and enjoyable read for those learning English.
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