An Introduction to Seventh Grade Sleuth Star, Sammy Keyes

Jan 31, 2004 - © Jillian Louise Gregory

Have you read any of the Nancy Drew mysteries? Nancy Drew uses her fine tuned mind and street smarts to outwit crooks, retrieve stolen goods and unravel countless other mysteries. Many times I've imagined that I was Nancy Drew deciphering the puzzles and making it home in time for dinner. There is now more than one "Nancy Drew" in town. She may be younger, but a whole lot spunkier.

If you're a fan of Nancy Drew and female mystery solvers, you'll love Sammy Keyes. Sammy Keyes is a seventh grader that figures out mysteries in no time flat. She can talk her way out of any sticky situation and sneak around town without being seen.

Author Wendelin Van Draanen writes Sammy Keyes adventures in a wonderfully entertaining style and in the language of a middle school mind.

Check out the synopsis of the first book in the series.

Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief by author Wendelin Van Draanen (Dell Yearling, 1998)

"Sammy Keyes isn't looking for danger when she trains her binoculars on the Heavenly Hotel across the street. So when she spies a man with gloves pawing through a purse, and he sees her, there's only one thing to do - wave. And then maybe tell the police.

But when she does spill her story, Officer Borsch looks at her like she's some snot-nosed little kid. Sammy's not about to put up with this. She's a seventh grader now, and she knows what she saw. And somehow, she's going to prove it."

This adventure won the EDGAR AWARD for Best Children's Mystery, which is a very high honor in the world of mystery writing. Sammy Keyes will keep you on the edge of your seat with several gut busting laughs along the way.

An Introduction to Seventh Grade Sleuth Star, Sammy Keyes

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