by Patricia Cecil Hass , illustrated by Laura Corson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 22, 2019
A delightful tale headlined by responsible tweens who just happen to be exceptional amateur detectives.
Awards & Accolades
Our Verdict
GET IT
Youngsters in Richmond, Virginia, are determined to find the thieves who looted a local art museum in this middle-grade mystery.
The last year hasn’t been easy for the Corbett children. Since their father’s death, the family has struggled financially. Now that it’s summer, 12-year-old Sally, who’s just off crutches from a lacrosse injury, can help younger brother, Andrew, 11, with his business. He handles everything from lawn care to feeding and walking pets. But the kids, along with Jane, the youngest, are shocked by a burglary at the museum where their mother, Cary, works. The thieves evidently zeroed in on antique American toys, which were part of an exhibition Cary had been organizing. As this show ties in with her recent promotion to head curator, the Corbetts are worried she’ll receive the blame for the thefts and lose her job. Consequently, Sally and Andrew decide to search for the culprits and recover the toys. They get their first big break from peer Henry Morrison, whose dad, Jim, is chairman of the museum’s board of trustees. Henry has a business similar to Andrew’s, and one of his clients had an antique toy that may have been from the exhibition. But going to speak with the client only leads to more questions and several suspects, including a suspicious motorcyclist the kids spotted prior to the robbery. As Sally, Andrew, and Henry inch closer to unmasking the thieves, they take increasing risks and may soon find themselves up against individuals more menacing than they could have ever imagined. Hass’ (Monument Avenue Memories, 2013, etc.) relatively short novel moves at a steady clip, due in large part to its succinct prose and tight editing. The author introduces the exceedingly likable Corbetts and skillfully teases the story’s mystery (by way of the shady motorcyclist) within the opening 10 pages. Sally, Andrew, and Henry are well-developed characters; they are all bright and considerate of others. Although they disregard cops’ warnings to stay away from the case and may commit a crime or two, the kids are generally cautious. For example, when they’re separated, they remain in contact as much as possible via cellphones. But more importantly, they’re responsible, as Andrew’s business takes precedence over any plan to follow up on a clue. In one instance, they decide first who’s cleaning a client’s pigeon coop before choosing which youngster will bike to check out a suspect’s workplace. The mystery isn’t difficult to unravel and often relies on coincidence. But Hass effectively generates a fraught narrative at the mere suggestion of danger. In one memorable scene, Sally, following the evidence, bikes to a store a distance away. Before she even arrives, an imminent storm produces dark clouds coupled with “low and ominous” rumbling thunder. The images by debut illustrator Corson resemble notebook sketches, but with copious details and shading. She deftly captures some of the book’s more intense sequences, though the highlight is a simple picture of little Jane enjoying a sandwich with the family cat in her lap. The author concludes her entertaining novel with a strong possibility of a sequel (Hint: The summer isn’t over).
A delightful tale headlined by responsible tweens who just happen to be exceptional amateur detectives.Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-578-55877-6
Page Count: 202
Publisher: Windsong Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Share your opinion of this book
by Kristin Hannah ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2006
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.
Sisters work together to solve a child-abandonment case.
Ellie and Julia Cates have never been close. Julia is shy and brainy; Ellie gets by on charm and looks. Their differences must be tossed aside when a traumatized young girl wanders in from the forest into their hometown in Washington. The sisters’ professional skills are put to the test. Julia is a world-renowned child psychologist who has lost her edge. She is reeling from a case that went publicly sour. Though she was cleared of all wrongdoing, Julia’s name was tarnished, forcing her to shutter her Beverly Hills practice. Ellie Barton is the local police chief in Rain Valley, who’s never faced a tougher case. This is her chance to prove she is more than just a fading homecoming queen, but a scarcity of clues and a reluctant victim make locating the girl’s parents nearly impossible. Ellie places an SOS call to her sister; she needs an expert to rehabilitate this wild-child who has been living outside of civilization for years. Confronted with her professional demons, Julia once again has the opportunity to display her talents and salvage her reputation. Hannah (The Things We Do for Love, 2004, etc.) is at her best when writing from the girl’s perspective. The feral wolf-child keeps the reader interested long after the other, transparent characters have grown tiresome. Hannah’s torturously over-written romance passages are stale, but there are surprises in store as the sisters set about unearthing Alice’s past and creating a home for her.
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-345-46752-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2005
Share your opinion of this book
by J.D. Salinger ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 1951
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.
A violent surfacing of adolescence (which has little in common with Tarkington's earlier, broadly comic, Seventeen) has a compulsive impact.
"Nobody big except me" is the dream world of Holden Caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab English of the pre-collegiate. For Holden is now being bounced from fancy prep, and, after a vicious evening with hall- and roommates, heads for New York to try to keep his latest failure from his parents. He tries to have a wild evening (all he does is pay the check), is terrorized by the hotel elevator man and his on-call whore, has a date with a girl he likes—and hates, sees his 10 year old sister, Phoebe. He also visits a sympathetic English teacher after trying on a drunken session, and when he keeps his date with Phoebe, who turns up with her suitcase to join him on his flight, he heads home to a hospital siege. This is tender and true, and impossible, in its picture of the old hells of young boys, the lonesomeness and tentative attempts to be mature and secure, the awful block between youth and being grown-up, the fright and sickness that humans and their behavior cause the challenging, the dramatization of the big bang. It is a sorry little worm's view of the off-beat of adult pressure, of contemporary strictures and conformity, of sentiment….
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.Pub Date: June 15, 1951
ISBN: 0316769177
Page Count: -
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1951
Share your opinion of this book
More by J.D. Salinger
BOOK REVIEW
More About This Book
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
APPRECIATIONS
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.