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 "excerpt": "Ghostwriter (2019 TV series) is a Sesame Workshop children's mystery on Apple TV+ (Nov 1, 2019 to Oct 21, 2022, three seasons, 39 episodes), a reboot of the 1992 PBS show in which a bookstore ghost releases fictional characters and four kids must return them to their books.",
 "snippet": "Ghostwriter (2019 TV series) is a Sesame Workshop children's mystery on Apple TV+ (Nov 1, 2019 to Oct 21, 2022, three seasons, 39 episodes), a reboot of the 1992 PBS show in which a bookstore ghost releases fictional characters and four kids must return them to their books.",
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 "markdown": "# Ghostwriter (2019 TV series)\n\n**Ghostwriter** is a children's live-action mystery series that premiered on Apple TV+ on November 1, 2019, in which a ghost haunting a neighborhood bookstore releases fictional characters into the real world and four kids team up to solve the mystery of its unfinished business.<sup>[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[2](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)</sup>  Developed for television by J.J. Johnson and Andrew Orenstein, it is a reimagining of the PBS series [Ghostwriter](https://www.edgepedia.org/ghostwriter) (1992-1995) produced by [Sesame Workshop](https://www.edgepedia.org/sesame-workshop) with Sinking Ship Entertainment.<sup>[2](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.tvline.com/news/ghostwriter-reboot-apple-tv-plus-1097464/)</sup>  It ran for three seasons of 13 episodes each, ending on October 21, 2022.<sup>[4](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/ghostwriter-2019)</sup>\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Premiere | November 1, 2019, as one of Apple TV+'s initial offerings<sup>[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.tvline.com/news/ghostwriter-reboot-apple-tv-plus-1097464/)</sup>  |\n| Premise | A ghost haunts a neighborhood bookstore and releases fictional characters into the real world; four kids must return them to their books<sup>[5](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/43788/ghostwriter)</sup> |\n| Run | Three seasons, 13 episodes each (39 total), November 1, 2019 to October 21, 2022<sup>[4](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/ghostwriter-2019)</sup> |\n| Production | Sesame Workshop (studio) with Sinking Ship Entertainment; executive producers include Luke Matheny, Andrew Orenstein, J.J. Johnson, Christin Simms, Blair Powers, and Kay Wilson Stallings<sup>[2](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)</sup> |\n| Awards | Won Outstanding Children's or Family Viewing Programming at the 47th Daytime Emmy Awards; Apple TV+ thereby became the first streaming service to win a Daytime Emmy in its first year of eligibility<sup>[6](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2020/09/apple-tv-announces-new-kids-series-doug-unplugs-and-stillwater-premiering-this-fall/)</sup> |\n| Rating | TV-G; approximately 25 minutes per episode<sup>[7](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[5](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/43788/ghostwriter)</sup>  |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise\n\nThe series centers on four kids brought together by a ghost in a neighborhood bookstore. The ghost communicates through written words and phrases spelled out in unexpected places that only the children can see, and it releases characters from works of literature into the real world. In the first season, Ruben Reyna (Isaac Arellanes), newly arrived in the city to live with his grandfather, is connected with Chevon (Amadi Chapata), Curtis (Justin Sanchez), and Donna (Hannah Levinson); the four must gather up the wayward visitors, such as Mowgli from *The Jungle Book* and characters from *Alice's Adventures in Wonderland*, and return them to their books. To do this they turn to the source books for context, learning each story well enough to tell friend from foe and help the characters solve their problems.<sup>[7](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[8](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ghostwriter-2019/)</sup>\n\nIn its second season the young heroes work to save their bookstore and discover the ghost's identity, meeting characters including Dr. Watson of Sherlock Holmes fame alongside tales created for the series such as \"Malia and the Magic Paintbrush\" and \"The Cobalt Mask.\"<sup>[6](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2020/09/apple-tv-announces-new-kids-series-doug-unplugs-and-stillwater-premiering-this-fall/)</sup> Season 3, released October 21, 2022, follows an entirely new cast of middle schoolers, Nia (Princess K. Mapp), Samir (Nour Assaf), and Charli (Daire McLeod), on adventures including a trio of Wizard of Oz-inspired characters.<sup>[2](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[9](https://thetvdb.com/series/ghostwriter-2019/allseasons/official)</sup>\n\n## Production and origins\n\nThe reboot was announced in September 2019 as a reinvention of the original Ghostwriter, a 1992-1995 PBS series in which New York City kids solved neighborhood mysteries with the help of a ghost who spelled out clues using text in books; that original ran 74 episodes and had briefly continued on CBS as *The New Ghostwriter Mysteries*.<sup>[3](https://www.tvline.com/news/ghostwriter-reboot-apple-tv-plus-1097464/)</sup> Like the original, the new series comes from Sesame Workshop (formerly the Children's Television Workshop), and it keeps the multicultural city setting of the first show.<sup>[10](https://www.imore.com/ghostwriter-review)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[6](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2020/09/apple-tv-announces-new-kids-series-doug-unplugs-and-stillwater-premiering-this-fall/)</sup>\n\nThe most deliberate change was in the mystery itself. Kay Wilson Stallings, Sesame Workshop's executive vice president of Creative and Production, explained that on the original show the focus was literacy and teaching kids to read, while the reimagined version centers on literature, encouraging children at an age when they can read to sample genres beyond the one they get stuck in. Having the ghost release fictional characters from books was a device created for the reboot, not a component of the original.<sup>[11](https://nerdist.com/article/ghostwriter-creative-team-reboot/)</sup> Luke Matheny, the series' Academy Award-winning writer and director, said he tried not to think of the original while working on this version, aiming to reimagine rather than imitate it.<sup>[11](https://nerdist.com/article/ghostwriter-creative-team-reboot/)</sup>\n\n## Reception and recognition\n\nSeason 1 holds a 100% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes based on six critic reviews, with an audience Popcornmeter score of 79% from fewer than 50 ratings.<sup>[12](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019/s01)</sup> [The Sydney Morning Herald](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-sydney-morning-herald)'s review called it a watchable fantasy-mystery series that aims to get kids reading children's classics again. Common Sense Media, which rated the show for ages 8+ and named it a Common Sense Selection, praised it as well written with a diverse cast and no iffy content.<sup>[12](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019/s01)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[7](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter)</sup>  The series also earned a Prix Jeunesse Award and a Parents' Choice Gold Medal Award.<sup>[2](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)</sup>\n\nIts Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Children's or Family Viewing Programming at the 47th Annual Daytime Emmys made Apple TV+ the first streaming service to win a Daytime Emmy in its first year of eligibility.<sup>[6](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2020/09/apple-tv-announces-new-kids-series-doug-unplugs-and-stillwater-premiering-this-fall/)</sup>\n\n## Books and spinoffs\n\nSesame Workshop expanded the series' literacy mission into print and web formats. In December 2019, Sourcebooks and Sesame Workshop announced a companion book series mixing inclusively adapted classics with original works, beginning with *Ghostwriter Presents: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland* and *The Jungle Book*, with the original story *Trinity* by D.J. MacHale following at the end of that month.<sup>[13](https://sesameworkshop.org/about-us/press-room/sourcebooks-and-sesame-workshop-publish-books-behind-ghostwriter-new/)</sup> A 2021 web series, *Ghostwriter: Beyond the Page*, extends the show on YouTube and Apple TV, teaching children the elements of storytelling through short episodes hosted by the character Donna, with an accompanying activity guide.<sup>[14](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter-beyond-the-page)</sup> Sesame Workshop also publishes featured curricula tied to the show, including \"Reading is Empowering,\" \"A Motivation to Read,\" and \"Diversity and Inclusion.\"<sup>[15](https://sesameworkshop.org/our-work/shows/ghostwriter/)</sup>\n\n## References\n\n1. [Ghostwriter (2019), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019)\n2. [Ghostwriter, Apple TV Press](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/ghostwriter/)\n3. ['Ghostwriter' Reboot Coming To Apple TV+, TVLine](https://www.tvline.com/news/ghostwriter-reboot-apple-tv-plus-1097464/)\n4. [Ghostwriter (2019), TheTVDB.com](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/ghostwriter-2019)\n5. [Ghostwriter, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/43788/ghostwriter)\n6. [Apple TV+ announces new kids' series premiering this fall, Apple TV Press (September 2020)](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2020/09/apple-tv-announces-new-kids-series-doug-unplugs-and-stillwater-premiering-this-fall/)\n7. [Ghostwriter Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter)\n8. [Ghostwriter (2019) Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/ghostwriter-2019/)\n9. [Ghostwriter (2019) Aired Order, TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/series/ghostwriter-2019/allseasons/official)\n10. ['Ghostwriter' review: Making literature cool again, iMore](https://www.imore.com/ghostwriter-review)\n11. [GHOSTWRITER Team on Reimagining the Classic Kids' Series, Nerdist](https://nerdist.com/article/ghostwriter-creative-team-reboot/)\n12. [Ghostwriter: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/ghostwriter_2019/s01)\n13. [Sourcebooks and Sesame Workshop to Publish the Books Behind Ghostwriter, Sesame Workshop](https://sesameworkshop.org/about-us/press-room/sourcebooks-and-sesame-workshop-publish-books-behind-ghostwriter-new/)\n14. [Ghostwriter: Beyond the Page Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/tv-reviews/ghostwriter-beyond-the-page)\n15. [Ghostwriter, Sesame Workshop](https://sesameworkshop.org/our-work/shows/ghostwriter/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Reboots, revivals, and spin-off series*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n",
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