Title: The Shrew Detective - The Case of the Pilfered Pearls
Author: Margi Preus
Genre: mystery
Age range: upper elementary school
Similar book: Horace & Bunwinkle by PJ Gardner
Summary (provided by publisher): Mystery: Something that is difficult or impossible to understand.
With a curious mind and a vast vocabulary (thanks to her wallpaper—pages of a discarded human dictionary), tiny Minerva Shrew would love nothing more than to solve the Big Mysteries of Life and the Universe.
Instead, in The Case of the Pilfered Pearls, she’s called upon to help her cousin Tenacity solve a mystery in the most dangerous of places: a human house. When a string of pearls goes missing, the human owner is sure a “dreadful rodent” has pilfered them—and now the lives of all Minerva’s friends are at risk! Will Minerva find the true culprit before the exterminators arrive?
What I liked: The solution to the mystery is carefully threaded throughout the narrative. It's slightly subtle but still clear enough for young readers to catch on if they are paying attention. The characters are somewhat anthropomorphized, as we would expect, but largely retain their animal natures. So we learn small facts about assorted animal species as well as solving a mystery.
What I didn't like: To some extent this book relies on the novelty of having animal characters. And since it is intended for young readers it is a bit simple and repetitive. It is likely charming enough for a read aloud.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
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