Image Map

Jun 25, 2013

Tween Tuesday: The Wig in the Window by Kristen Kittscher

4 fudgy, frosted brownies.

Cover Love:
Yes!  I love the colors and the font and the girls.  I just adore this cover and know it will be eye catching to many readers in my library!

Why I Wanted to Read This:
I love tween girl mystery books so when I read the synopsis for this one I knew I had to read it.  Here it is from GoodReads:
Best friends and seventh graders Sophie Young and Grace Yang have made a game out of spying on their neighbors. On one of their midnight stakeouts, they witness a terrifying, bloody scene at the home of their bizarre middle-school counselor, Dr. Charlotte Agford (aka Dr. Awkward).

At least, they think they do. The truth is that Dr. Agford was only making her famous pickled beets! But when Dr. Agford begins acting even weirder than usual, Sophie and Grace become convinced that she’s hiding something—and they’re determined to find out what it is.

Soon the girls are breaking secret codes, being followed by a strange blue car, and tailing strangers with unibrows and Texas accents. But as their investigation heats up, Sophie and Grace start to crack under the pressure. They might solve their case, but will their friendship survive?

Perfect for fans of The Mysterious Benedict Society, The Wig in the Window is a smart, funny middle-grade mystery with a REAR WINDOW twist.
Romance?: Nope, but Sophie does have a crush on a fellow seventh grade boy.

My Thoughts:
This is not a tame little mystery story.  There is a lot of danger and action and a very intriguing mystery.  One thing I liked (that I think will resonate with most kids) was how easy it was for Charlotte Agford to talk her way into Sophie's life.  Because she was in a position of power at Sophie's school she was able to convince Sophie's parents of what was best for Sophie. That annoyed me a little bit because as a parent I would have my own judgements about what they did or were going through and how to handle it.  However, Sophie's parents are really busy so it's easy to see how they were willing to hand her punishment over to someone else.  And they did hold Sophie accountable for her actions which was good.

There were a few good twists, but not ones that I were expecting, which kept me hooked in the story.

A few things I read talked about how much they loved the friendship between Sophie and Grace.  And while I did like it, there were so many doubts and hurts throughout the book that I had to wonder if it would last.  And Sophie was able to make a new, good friend who is worth a second look.  They ended on a good note but there were times during the books that I wondered if their friendship would even survive!

The villain, Charlotte Agford, was truly awful.  Just gross!  I am glad the author did not make her sympathetic, it was good to have someone dislike so much. 

I liked how Sophie and Grace were able to solve the mystery and follow their instincts to prove there even was a mystery.  They are smart, resourceful girls.  I did really like that the author did make the danger real.  I think will make this mystery even more attractive to young readers.  Nothing was watered down.

To Sum Up:   A great middle grade book that I will be buying for my library.  Many young readers will enjoy this one!

Book requested and received from HarperCollins.  Thanks so much!

1 comment: