Hell Phone

by William Sleator

Book Overview

Seventeen-year-old Nick buys a used cell phone only to call his girlfriend, but strange and desperate people keep calling--one of them a denizen of Hell--begging for or demanding his help This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0810954796
• ISBN13: 9780810954793
• Release Date: September 2006
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Length: 252 Pages
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.3" x 8.0"
• Age Range: 13 to 16 years
• Grade Range: Grades 8 to 11

Customer Reviews

check your phone

Have you ever been in a situation that's in such secrecy, you can't even tell your friends and, you have to turn down the cops. Well have you? Nick has nick had bought a phone so that he could talk to his Jen his girl friend and apparently it turns out to be a portal from the surface of the earth to the bottom of hell. I decided to read this book because it was so descriptive and the way that the story was written in was so, interesting. This book caught my attention because I couldn't put it down. I rated this book five stars for the following reasons. First of all I was so into the book it really makes you feel like your cornered and that your nick. This book is very dramatic because it had a lot of mixes' in emotions. I would recommend this book to real passionate readers who love books that have a say in it or a so what. This book also teaches you a life lesson and its think before you act. Another lesson that it teaches is think f the consciences. I really enjoyed this book. READ IT! -mm

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Start with some classic Rod Serling-Twilight Zone; add in some of Dante's Divine Comedy with extra "Inferno" sprinkled on top. Mix in cell phones, video games, part time jobs, and a high school romance and you have a book that grabs the most reluctant, uninterested, I-don't-read-books guy (or girl) and keeps them turning the pages. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. [1855 H. G. Bohn Hand-Book of Proverbs 514] Nick is an "A" student works a part-time job at a hospital. His income helps his mother who is working two jobs to support them. He does not have a car but gets around on an old bike. For the first time in his life, Nick has a girlfriend and he is crazy about her. He is respectful to her parents and mindful of her commitment to the high school soccer team. He just wants to be able to talk to her on the phone in the evening. A flier advertising the "cheapest phones in town" lures him to a store in a seedy neighborhood to look for a cell phone The fact that the caller ID does not work, does not dissuade him from buying the phone that is offered to him. The whiff of sulfur about the cell phone store foreshadows the events to come. He begins to receive terrifying calls the moment he turns the phone on. A sobbing young woman and dire warnings from the former owner of the phone frighten him. When an anonymous, sinister voice threatens him, Nick's life begins to spin out of control. The reader can sense the downward spiral Nick is on and calls to him at every turn to stop and reverse his course. The cell phone takes on a life of its own and plays on his insecurities. The book has great appeal to middle school boys. Seventh and eighth grade guys are looking towards high school when they will be have a part time job, working for good grades to earn college scholarships, and dating for the first time. Books are a safe way for kids to "try on" a future. In every way, Hell Phone is a cautionary tale. The ease in which Nick slips away from his former life is frightening as each decision seems to be made almost innocently or as an attempt to protect his girlfriend and mother. Sleator allows for redemption but harsh lessons are learned and no one escapes scot-free. The situations are grim and the book is creepy but there is no vulgar language or "Sam Peckinpaugh" style violence. The filth and ordure of Hell is vividly described and provides a hefty, "eeewww..." factor. What a great teen book club read this would be! There is much to ponder and discuss here about right and wrong, religious implications, free will and the nature of evil. The book design is by the imaginative Chad Beckerman. (who also designs The Last Apprentice series) This cover grabs the reader by the shoulders and dares them to move on to another book. The opening pages shows a cell phone signal strength icon with the final and tallest bar in flames. Flames edge the pages exactly where a reader holds the book to read. No wonder the book hardly ever makes it back

Love it, love it, love it!

I will not bore you with details but I found this book to be a very quick and fun read. The storyline is very unique and interesting that just catches you from the first page. I admit I was a little unhappy with the ending only because I wished it differently, but was still happy with my buy. This is definitely a book for young teens and adults like my self who are interested in stories about hell, evil, and death; and is such a page turner that you may finish it in 5 days like I did! :)

Great Book!

Great, fast paced read! Nick is poor and lives in a trailer, his girlfriend is Jen and she is upper middle class. Her parents don't approve of Nick. In order for Nick, who is too poor to use a phone at home, to talk to Jen; he buys a cell phone. The phone is surprisingly cheap, it doesn't have caller ID either. Nick buys it and immediatly starts getting strange calls on it. The phone is coming between Nick and his girlfriend Jen and starts making him doing strange things. This book is great! I definetely didn't see the twist in the last few chapters coming! I couldn't stop reading. This is the first book I've read cover to cover without be able to put it down in a long time! Very fast paced, Nick and the other characters are very believable. Most fans of William Sleator and YA horror will enjoy it, he doesn't disappoint with this one.

WARNING! WARNING!

Do not read the editorial review above about this book unless you like spoilers!! I read the review only to find out that it gives away a couple of the important twists that take place in this story. So just a warning to fellow readers who like to stay in suspense and be surprised by the book they are reading. Now on to the book. William Sleator has been writing books for young adults for decades. This is probably his most gory, creepy and scary book yet. It is aimed towards young readers but some of them might really get freaked out by this one. Fans of books by R. L. Stine and other horror authors would enjoy this. The main character is Nick, who is a decent kid but is very poor. He works hard and is able to afford an inexpensive cell phone to call his girlfriend. Unfortunately this phone has a history to it and it's not a good one. Right after he buys it, Nick is tormented by strangers calling him and soon he starts doing things against his better judgement. These actions lead him towards an ending that will leave the reader hooked until the final chapter. Once again Mr. Sleator creates believable characters, an amazing plot, and builds up to an incredible climax, making the reader wonder how the story can possibly have a satisfying resolution. I highly recommend this to Sleator fans as well as horror fans. Even though the target audience is young readers, many adults would also enjoy this fast-paced read.