Mystery on Museum Mile

redheadperson22 - Warning! This review may contain spoilers. There's this 11 year-old boy named Edmund. He has a photographic memory and he's very good at drawing. One day, Edmund is out with his dad, when they hear something in an ally. Edmund's dad goes to check it out while Edmund hides under a bench. A man runs out of the ally, and soon Edmund's dad comes out too. They go to the police station and Edmund's dad tells them that two men were fighting in the ally and he tried to break it up. Eventually the police department hires Edmund to help them with a case. (Sorry for such a poor description, I'm working off my memory). What I thought of it: My favorite character was Eddie's friend Jonah. Their friendship was probably the most interesting thing in the book for me. Eddie was an ok main character. Though one thing about him kind of bothered me. Eddie was black, and the author made way too big a deal of that. I mean it was fine when they were mentioning it casually and in the dialog but was it really necessary to say that his last name came from when his ancestors were owned by white people back in the slave days I mean I'm black, and I have no idea were my last name came from. It kind of made sense because Eddie's parents seemed like they liked to research their family history and stuff, but it still seemed a but unnatural. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong about making remarks about him being black. But at some points, the way it was presented it seemed unnatural and forced. Also, I don't get why it was necessary for him to always be ogling over Jenny. She said like 4 lines in the entire book (which made sense I guess since she's supposed to be quiet), and was literally just someone for Eddie to swoon over. She was a completely pointless character. But maybe they'll give her a real purpose in the sequel. The writing was fine, really just your typical middle-grade-novel-with-a-male-protagonist writing. The ending was ok. The plot was ok, but very cliché. But the entire book was pretty cliché Overall, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't that great. I don't plan on reading the sequel.

May 5, 2014
A normal day turns into a life-changer for African-American New York City sixth-grader Eddie Red when he learns that his father's job loss means he can no longer attend private school. After Eddie witnesses a scuffle in an alley, the police, led by surly Detective Bovano, are impressed when Eddie uses his photographic memory to sketch the perpetrator perfectly. Promising wages and to fund Eddie's schooling, the police hires the 11-year-old to visit museums and identify disguised members of the Picasso Gang, art thieves wreaking havoc on Museum Mile. Since Detective Bovano won't release specific information on the long-open case or give him a weapon, Eddie taps the expertise of his highly intelligent, obsessive-compulsive best friend Jonah, who schemes alongside him. In Wells's lighthearted, voice-driven debut novel, first in a planned series, Eddie never truly seems in danger, but his audacity and persistence, a clever mystery that unfolds atmospherically, and Calo's sly pencil portraits result in a fun sleuthing story. Ages 9â12. Agent: Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary.

April 1, 2014

Gr 4-6-Edmund Xavier Lonnrot has a photographic memory and amazing art abilities, but in lots of ways he is just an ordinary sixth grader-growing tongue-tied and sweaty-palmed around a crush, playing video games with his best friend, and trying to convince his parents to give him more independence. His remarkable skills come to the attention of the local police, after he witnesses a man fleeing an altercation. Eddie can draw the suspect from memory and he is hired to help with a complicated art-theft case. Now known as "Eddie Red"-the codename he is given-he is eager to help, hoping to earn money to keep attending the school he loves in the wake of his father's recent layoff. Although he assists the police, his realistic sixth-graderness leads to some problems: using an officer's taser just like in the movies, getting really bored during stakeouts, and getting tied up after underestimating the real dangers involved. The plot moves along at a good pace, and though at times it strains belief, most readers won't mind. Eddie's portraits are sprinkled throughout the book, giving it added visual appeal and filling in some of the gaps in character development. "Eddie Red" is bound to be a series that will appeal to fans of fast-paced mysteries who have outgrown David A. Adler's "Cam Jansen" (Viking) books, but are not quite ready for the nuance of Blue Balliett's Chasing Vermeer (Scholastic, 2004).-Gesse Stark-Smith, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.