Tracking Daddy Down

Starred review from December 1, 2008
Gr 4-7-A riveting opening sentence pulls readers into this unusual story of 11-year-old Billie Wisher, whose father and uncle have just robbed a bank. The girl adores her dad despite his pattern of abandonment. She is determined to find him before the police do and wants him to return the money. Billie convinces her cousin Tommy to go on her secret quest. As she creates a cumbersome trail of lies for her mother and stepfather and to cover her tracks with the townspeople, she weaves a labyrinthine web that becomes increasingly more difficult to manage. Kelsey has created a determined, feisty heroine whose sometimes foolish courage grows out of her love for her father and her need to believe that he is basically a good man, and even the danger involved in following him doesn't alter her resolve. The intensity of Billie's emotions causes readers to hope that she can make this dismal situation turn out happily. This multifaceted story of adventure, family, love, and trust is a testament to how strong a child's need for fatherly attention and love can be. The jarring disconnect between the book's underlying serious theme and the cartoonish art and bright red and pink on the jacket is unfortunate."Renee Steinberg, formerly at Fieldstone Middle School, Montvale, NJ"

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