Unwanted library discard that deserves another chance

This book — The Great McGoniggle's Gray Ghost — has a sad-looking exterior but is perfectly fine on the inside. It was super cheap and I feared it was headed for the dumpster. So I picked it up, will spiff it up a little, and hope I can weave some Bradbury-esque October magic and put it in the just-right Little Free Library for someone's future happy discovery.

It's not the spookiest children's book in the world, but it certainly has enough Halloweeny elements for this month's theme. Published a half-century ago in 1975, The Great McGoniggle's Gray Ghost was written by Scott Corbett (1913-2006) and was the first of four books featuring Mac McGoniggle. 

It was illustrated by Bill Ogden (listed as William Ogden on the copyright page), but I'm fairly certain that's not the Bill Ogden who was a famed surf artist. The illustrations in this book remind me a little of the early Choose Your Own Adventure books, which were illustrated by Don Hedin under the pseudonym Paul Granger.

The plot is described succinctly on the copyright page: "Two boys attempt to recover a balloon bearing a valuable prize certificate which has become attached to the eaves of a mansion inhabited by a disagreeable couple and a ferocious dog."

The two boys are a bit insufferable, too, so I suppose who the reader empathizes with might depend on their age and point of view.

That said, it seems like a great book for kids. Writing a review for Amazon in 2016, Carl Anderson states: "I recommend it. There's funny parts, spooky parts, and for the age group its intended, exciting parts."

Here are some other illustrations and images from this once well-loved library book that hopefully will have another chapter ahead...