Middle Grade Monday: The Odds of Getting Even (Audio Book review)

 

 
Title: The Odds of Getting Even
Author: Sheila Turnage; read by Lauren Fortgang
Publisher: Listening Library, 2015. Original 2015 by Kathy Dawson Books, 352 pages.
Source: Library digital resources

This is the 3rd mystery in the Tupelo Landing series. I reviewed the first, Three Times Lucky, in March of 2013. The second is The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, which I read in 2014.

Publisher's Summary: 
The trial of the century has come to Tupelo Landing, NC. Mo and Dale, aka Desperado Detectives, head to court as star witnesses against Dale's daddy--confessed kidnapper Macon Johnson. Dale's nerves are jangled, but Mo, who doesn't mind getting even with Mr. Macon for hurting her loved ones, looks forward to a slam dunk conviction--if everything goes as expected.

Of course nothing goes as expected. Macon Johnson sees to that. In no time flat, Macon's on the run, Tupelo Landing's in lockdown, and Dale's brother's life hangs in the balance. With Harm Crenshaw, newly appointed intern, Desperado Detectives are on the case. But it means they have to take on a tough client--one they'd never want in a million years.

For everyone who's already fallen for Mo and Dale, and for anyone who's new to Tupelo Landing, The Odds of Getting Even is a heartwarming story that perfectly blends mystery and action with more serious themes about family and fathers, all without ever losing its sense of humor.

My Review: 
Even though I couldn't find my review of the second book in this series (Ghosts of Tupelo Landing), I read it and have enjoyed all three books. As a mystery, this plays very well. There are plenty of suspects, and lots of clues. If I got to the culprit faster than the kids did, I think that was intentional to some degree--a middle grade mystery should allow a middle grade reader some chance of solving the crime. But once again there is a nice balance of excitement, clues to follow, adventure, and some serious themes about family. 

I like that the techy math kids are girls, one of whom solves a code for Mo and Dale and breaks the case open (she is also a shrewd buisnesswoman who makes sure she gets appropriate payment for that service). But I also like the way in which Dale, ever the academic flop of the group, is shown to be plenty smart.

The writing is strong, the characters wonderfully developed where they should be, and entertainingly modified from "stock" characters where that's appropriate (the little old southern lady with a steel core...), and the story nicely paced. The narration by Lauren Fortgang is beautifully done, making it a joy to listen to the story.

My Recommendation:
Ms. Turnage has added another strong work to the options for middle grade readers. I'd recommend reading the series in order: though I think the book can stand on it's own it might kind of spoil things for the books that go before, and some things will make more sense with some background. I think it speaks well for the series that even though it's been 4 1/2 years since I read the first one, I remembered enough to make sense of things right off. Still, I might go back and re-read, just to enjoy a good yarn. Really, the biggest question I have is how, since this came out 2 years ago, I missed it until now (and is there another one yet?).

FTC Disclosure: I checked The Odds of Getting Even out of my library, and received nothing from the writer or publisher for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising." 

Middle Grade Monday: Greenglass House

 

Title: Greenglass House
Author: Kate Milford
Publisher: Clarion Books, 2014. 375 pages.
Source: Library

Publisher's Summary:
A rambling old inn, a strange map, an attic packed with treasures, squabbling guests, theft, friendship, and an unusual haunting mark this smart middle grade mystery in the tradition of the Mysterious Benedict Society books and Blue Balliet's Chasing Vermeer series.

It's wintertime at Greenglass House. The creaky smuggler's inn is always quiet during this season, and twelve-year-old Milo, the innkeepers' adopted son, plans to spend his holidays relaxing. But on the first icy night of vacation, out of nowhere, the guest bell rings. Then rings again. And again. Soon Milo's home is bursting with odd, secretive guests, each one bearing a strange story that is somehow connected to the rambling old house. As objects go missing and tempers flare, Milo and Meddy, the cook's daughter, must decipher clues and untangle the web of deepening mysteries to discover the truth about Greenglass House-and themselves.  


My Review: 
This definitely wasn't what I expected. I'm not sure just what I did expect, but this wasn't it. It was even less what I thought it was in the middle of the book. Probably the most telling thing I can say about it is that I was about 2/3 of the way through at bedtime, and ended up staying up rather late to finish it, because I just couldn't stop! It wasn't just that things got exciting, though they did. I also felt a strong need to find out just what was going on.

In addition to a story about family and friendship, and a mystery, this is a book that plays with the boundaries of reality. The time period is left deliberately vague; it is modern, but no one seems to have a cell phone. The location is likewise unknown, but we are on a river that harbors smugglers, but the smuggling seems to be in order to get around the greed of the sole purveyor of supplies in the region (this might be a nice way to make the smuggling less morally dubious for the sake of younger readers). The effect of all this vagueness is that the reader is perfectly positioned to believe whatever unfolds.

I did.

My Recommendation:
A good fun read, with a little bit of a serious side about family--what it is, and who is part of it. Milo's adoption has come to the forefront of his thinking, and that allows the reader to think about what it means to be adopted, and to have two families, even if you only know one of them. So I'll give this credit for being well-written, thought-provoking AND a lot of fun.

I am intrigued enough to want to read the sequel, though the blurb sounds kind of like a re-hash of the same story. I'm going to give Milford credit for being better than that, given the quality of this one.

FTC Disclosure: I checked Greenglass House out of my library, and received nothing from the writer or publisher for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  

Monday Mystery for Kids: Murder is Bad Manners, by Robin Stevens

Title: Murder is Bad Manners

Author: Robin Stevens

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2015. 307 pages.

Source: Library digital resources

Publisher's Summary:

Deepdean School for Girls, 1934. When Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong set up their very own deadly secret detective agency, they struggle to find any truly exciting mysteries to investigate. (Unless you count the case of Lavinia's missing tie. Which they don't, really.)

But then Hazel discovers the Science Mistress, Miss Bell, lying dead in the Gym. She thinks it must all have been a terrible accident - but when she and Daisy return five minutes later, the body has disappeared. Now the girls know a murder must have taken place . . . and there's more than one person at Deepdean with a motive.

Now Hazel and Daisy not only have a murder to solve: they have to prove a murder happened in the first place. Determined to get to the bottom of the crime before the killer strikes again (and before the police can get there first, naturally), Hazel and Daisy must hunt for evidence, spy on their suspects and use all the cunning, scheming and intuition they can muster. But will they succeed? And can their friendship stand the test? 

My Review: 

I was tipped off to this series by a  review from Jemima Pett. She got hold of the most recent book in the series, but I went off and found the first one, because that's the kind of person I am. I'm glad to have discovered them, though the idea of murder mysteries for children is an odd one. 

In fact, there is nothing (aside from a corpse) to make this unsuited for older children, though in my opinion the book is just as suited to adult readers, despite the youth of the main characters. The plot was interesting, the characters (the main characters, Wells and Wong) are well-developed and their friendship has more complexity than might be expected. 

The story had an interesting feel--which probably would match what the kids would feel--of being mostly a lark, right up until things get serious and the girls realize they could be in danger. Of course Hazel Wong, the narrator and the worrier of the pair, sees this first, while her friend is still wrapped up in the joy of having a real mystery to solve.

My Recommendation:

For ages 11 and up, I think. And perfect for adult mystery fans with a soft spot for those old British boarding school stories.

FTC Disclosure: I checked Murder is Bad Manners out of my (digital) library, and received nothing from the writer or publisher in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  

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Our Final Summer Reading Sale:  For the month of August, Halitor the Hero is just 99 cents for the ebook! 

Or purchase in the format of your choice from Smashwords.

Middle Grade Monday: Fireflies, by Bree Wolf

Okay, yeah, I'm a little late. Weekends happen :)

Title: Fireflies
Author: Bree Wolf
Publisher: self. 2013, 152 pages
Source: Smashwords free book.

Note: this was a book-of-the-month read for my Goodreads Great Middle Grade Reads group. I'm not sure if the book is always free or if the author made it free for that event.

Publisher's Summary:
In the buzzing city of New York, 12-year-old Gabriel Scott retreats from his parents' constant arguing into a virtual world of adventure and companionship. Unfortunately, as summer comes along, his parents ship him off to Kenton Woods to stay with grandparents he hasn't seen in years. Trapped in a world of small town life, Gabriel suddenly finds himself cut off from the only friends he ever had when he discovers that his grandparents don't even own a computer.

After sulking in the house for a few days, his grandfather drags him outside and Gabriel takes his first steps into the real world. Gathering all his courage, he talks to Liam, their neighbors' son, who hands him a small sheet of paper and asks for his help. From that day on, Gabriel follows Liam and his friends on a treasure hunt across town. With the entire school on their heels, they rush to solve riddle after riddle, slowly closing in on that which no one has ever found before. Along the way, Gabriel meets the head-butting twins Jack and Jordan, their dog Cat, the insane story-teller Eddie and Hannah, a young girl locked up in her room.

Hand in hand, they work to help Hannah escape and take her along on their adventure. Having spent her entire life cut off from the rest of the world, Gabriel finds a kindred spirit in the red-haired girl with the glowing eyes. But one day, a secret Hannah has been carefully hiding from the group rears its ugly head and threatens to shatter Gabriel's new life and the place he thought he'd finally found in the world.

My Review: 
(That summary is kind of long, but it does outline the story nicely).

I found this a beautiful story, with a nice balance of humor, adventure, puzzles, and pathos (I mean that last in a positive way). In a sense, it's a coming-of-age story, as Gabriel and his new friends not only learn to work together but Gabriel learns to deal with some hard life issues. There were a few glitches with the writing and formatting, but they did not prevent me from feeling that this was a beautiful and beautifully written story with a wide appeal.

About those glitches: of no great significance was a problem with hyphenation, where apparently hard hyphens got into the text, so that words were divid-ed in random places on the page (since my line breaks obviously didn't match the originals). That was a minor distraction.

A larger distraction for me, and the reason this will get 4, rather than 5 stars on Goodreads (4 being "I really liked it" and 5 "it's amazing") was that the dialog at times felt a little stilted to me. Since I'm in the midst of editing, and dialog/voice is part of what I'm focusing on, I am probably more sensitized to this than the average reader. For the same reason, I also dug around to see why I was bothered. The answer I found was pretty simple: the characters didn't use enough contractions. It's not all the time, and I'll accept it--sort of--for Eddie, who is supposed to talk like his lawyer parents. But I stumbled early on when, for example, Gabriel's mother is speaking: "But that is over now. Everything is fine. This is not about us...We are just doing what's best for you." There are other places where a similar tone shows up. Sometimes it looks like it's meant as emphasis, but...like I say, I'm a bit sensitive to it right now.

Probably my only other concern is that in the early part of the book we spend a  lot of time immersed in Gabriel's fictional world--the one in his computer game where he spends most of his time. In the early chapters it's a big enough part of the the book that I found myself wanting resolution for the adventure going on there, too. But Gabriel loses interest when the real world becomes a place worth staying in, as he should.  I just wish I hadn't been quite so drawn in to that alternative story. Perhaps the author will return to this in the next book, as this does have a sequel. For this book, I could actually have happily started the story when he gets to his grandparents' house.

[Reader warning: this is meant as part of a trilogy, but though Book 2 is out, the author has no immediate plans to write book 3. So you may never get complete resolution, though frankly this book doesn't really need a sequel.]

Recommendation:
Despite my kvetching, I can recommend this for kids from about 9 up, and I think adults will enjoy it too.

Full Disclosure: I downloaded Fireflies as a free book from Smashwords, of my own free will, and received nothing from the writer or publisher in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  

Middle Grade mysteries: 2 New Frankie Dupont Books!

   

Participating in a Book Review Blast with Mother-Daughter Book Reviews.

About the Books

Title: Frankie Dupont and The Science Fair Sabotage  
Author: Julie Anne Grasso | Illustrator: Alexander Avellino | 
Publication Date: May 11, 2015  
Publisher: Independent  
Pages: 134 
Recommended Ages: 8 to 12  
Publisher's Summary: Frankie Dupont is less than impressed when he has to attend the Sustainable Science Fair with Kat and Amy. Upon his arrival, he learns that Amy's brothers have had their robotics chip stolen. Keen to recover the chip, Frankie questions the kids in the competition, but everyone seems to have a motive. When baffling clues start rolling in via ͞ Snap-Goss ͟instant messages, Frankie realizes it will take all of his detective muscles to solve this case. An illustrated mystery for ages 8- 12.

My Review: 
I found the mystery and solution in this story perhaps the most satisfying so far of the Frankie Dupont Mysteries, but admit that as it has been many months since reading the first two, I found that I had lost track of some characters whom I was clearly expected to know. This is frustrating at first, but soon enough the story picks up speed on its own. A quick and easy read, it is nevertheless a good mystery, with a solution that holds up, and it is even plausible that young Frankie can solve it more or less on his own, with some reasoning.

Amazon * Goodreads

Title: Frankie Dupont and High Seas Heist
Author: Julie Anne Grasso | Illustrator: Alexander Avellino
Publication Date: July 6, 2015 
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 148 
Recommended Ages: 8 to 12
Publisher's Summary: Frankie Dupont seems to catch odd-ball cases in the most unlikely places. You would think he would be used to it by now. When his next case lands him on a luxury cruise liner full of devious chocolatiers with ulterior motives, Frankie will be expected to solve the crime, even before it's committed. Although his mind is certainly up for the challenge, Frankie realizes his stomach has yet to find its sea legs. An illustrated mystery for ages 8- 12

My Review:
Frankie's all at sea this time. He has gone on an Antarctic Cruise with his father, his dog, and his two sidekicks Kat & Amy, on a mission to find a thief and stop a theft before it happens. This time Frankie is working alongside both his father and Inspector Cluesome, who up to now has felt more like a nemesis or at least an arch-rival. 

It wasn't until they took off from Tasmania that I remembered that Frankie lives in Australia. That helps make the cruise a little more plausible, but the whole thing still feels maybe a little too far from realism, or maybe Antarctica feels that accessible from Australia (a cruise to Antarctica to reveal a new chocolate does feel a little absurd; maybe it's supposed to). The mystery is still good, though the denouement was visible from fairly far off, and this time Frankie is maybe a bit too dependent on his gadgetry rather than his brains. 

Recommendation:
I enjoy Frankie, and find that in most of his stories he has a nice blend of unusual smarts--and some lovely flaws, including too much belief in his own skills.The books aren't terribly realistic, and aren't trying to be--there's a hint of SF/Fantasy in most of them, from the super-advanced detective gadgets Frankie uses to the mysterious behavior of Enderby Manor (Book 1). That means that I have to change my mind-set a bit to read them, but most children will have no trouble with it. 

I can recommend the Frankie Dupont books to any child who likes mystery. I would say it's for fans of the Hardy Boys and Encyclopedia Brown, but these books probably come before those in terms of reading level. The publisher lists the age range as 8-12; I would probably say the audience tends to the lower end of that span.

Amazon * Goodreads

About the Author: Julie Anne Grasso

With a background in paediatric nursing, Julie Anne Grasso spent many years literally wrapping children in cotton wool. Every day she witnessed courage and resilience from the tiny people she cared for, which inspired her to write stories to entertain them. A science fiction nerd (she even owns a TARDIS), cupcake enthusiast and lover of all things mystery, she lives in Melbourne with her husband Danny and their little girl Giselle. Most days she can be found sipping chai tea and dreaming up wonderful worlds that often involve consumption of cupcakes.





And it's time for the Kid Lit Blog hop, now hopping once a month. Follow the link and join the hop, or just hop around to check out lots of great kids books.

D: Mt. Desert Island and a Middle Grade Mystery

 

Day 4 of the Challenge, and D is for Mt. Desert Island. That would be Acadia National Park, and am I already messing around with the alphabet? You bet I am! Because even though the island is named for "Mt. Desert" there is no Mt. Desert. The French explorer Champlain called the place "île des monts déserts" or island of the bare (desert) mountains. The largest of those bare mountains is now known as Cadillac Mountain. Are you confused yet? Well, don't let it bother you. It's all just an excuse to bring you a review of Out of the Deep, a mystery for middle-grade readers with an environmental theme.

Title: Out of the Deep (Series: Mysteries in Our National Parks).
Author: Gloria Skurzynski and Alane Ferguson
Publisher:  The National Geographic Society, 2002.147 pages.
Source: The ever-beloved library

Publisher's Summary: 
(Note: during A to Z I am more inclined than usual just to give you what the publisher uses as a blurb).
Wildlife veterinarian Olivia Landon and her family are in Maine, investigating the mysterious strandings of marine mammals on the rocky beaches of Acadia National Park. With the family is 14-year-old Bindy Callister, a temporary ward who has been bullied by her older brother. Jack, Ashley, and Bindy come upon a baby humpback whale stranded in a rocky tidal pool and barely alive. During the complex rescue operation that follows, no one notices when Bindy wanders off. By the time Jack and Ashley find her, Bindy is acting very strange. She knows who' s causing the strandings but is afraid to tell. Jack and Ashley must get her to talk before more lives are endangered!

Review:
I've been meaning to track down and read some of these National Park mysteries ever since I first saw them in a park bookstore several years ago. I hadn't done it mostly because I rather feared they would be mediocre stories slapped together for a theme. (Well, and because some have rather sensational-literature-style covers). I should have known better. I don't find many bad books in the Parks bookstores. And if this is no great work of literature, it is a well-constructed mystery for kids, with just enough excitement to keep them reading, and some reasonably well-developed characters.

My second fear was that the ecological message would swamp the story. That is always a risk with a book that is written at least in part with a message, and make no mistake, this is a book with a message. But I have to say that the authors--one a recognized writer of adult mysteries, and the other a science writer--handled the material well. A kid reading this will learn a lot about whales and only occasionally may feel that he has wandered into a textbook. Far more often, she will feel like she'd better finish the chapter and make sure they all survive! 

A brief afterword by a whale researcher helps the kids sort out truth and fiction.

Recommendation:
I think this book will appeal to both boys and girls from maybe age 8 or 9 and up. There is some rather real peril before the end, but you never really doubt that the kids will be okay, and I like that they take action themselves in a tight situation. This is a book that has less appeal to adults than children, I think--in other words, it hits pretty squarely on the audience it aimed for.

Full Disclosure: I checked Out of the Deep out of my library, and received nothing from the writer or publisher in exchange for my honest review.  The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."  


Now for a couple of photos to go with the setting:

The kids rescue a whale that is stranded on, I think, the beach in this photo. At any rate, they turn and see The Beehive behind them, and this is shot from the top of The Beehive!

Waiting for sunset on the bald top of Cadillac Mountain, largest of the "desert" mountains.

I also need to note and apologize here--we are on the road for the next week (getting new photos to share!) so my responses will be limited, as will my visits to other blogs. I'll do my best to catch up whenever I have internet access, though, so please don't give up on me!