Bibliographic Information
Haines, Kathryn Miller. (2011). The Girl is Murder. New York: Roaring Brook Press.
Descriptive Summary
This first book in The
Girl is Murder series follows fifteen year-old Iris Anderson as she takes
on the role of detective to aid her injured father. Following WWII, Iris’s
father has returned home with an amputation that has left him unable to do the
leg-work required for his job as a private detective. Iris, determined to help
her father and satisfy her own curiosity, secretly takes on the job as her own.
Evaluative Comments
Kathryn Miller Haines clearly did a lot of research for this
story as the setting is perfect. The post-war atmosphere lends a feeling of
eeriness and insecurity to the story. The vivid descriptions of middle class
society at the time are so vividly that feeling like you are in the story is
easy. Iris herself is also an engaging character and you can’t help but
root for her to solve the mystery, despite your better judgment that she is
treading dangerously. But is she really? The big mystery of the story ends up
being solved rather simply, and the rest of the mysteries alluded to by Iris
just seem to be forgotten in the end, making the story as a whole feel incomplete.
While this story is heart-warming when you consider it to be
about a young girl coming to terms with her broken family, and living in a
post-war society, the adventures she finds herself in, which are supposed to be
the focus of the book, are never fully explored. As such, the title and genre of
this series are rather misleading.
I would give this book a 4/10.
Suggested Audience
Ages 12 and up.
Readers’ Advisory Notes
character-centered, disheartening, chatty
If you enjoyed this book, see the other books in The Girl is Murder series, or try the Rosie Winters mystery series by the same author.
Booktalking Hook
Move
over Nancy Drew! There is a new girl in town… a 1940s town that is!
This book is listed on numerous online reading lists for
young adults, including those on goodreads.com, “The Book Smugglers”, and “The
Teen Book Scene.”
Also, the author Kathryn Miller Haines is well-known for her previous
young adult mystery series Rosie Winters.
Category
Mystery, Thriller or Suspense
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