something had changed. Suddenly,
Dad was too busy to play. Mom was
too tired. And Mom and Dad kept
whispering to each other. Juniper
felt a bit left out.
"Fine!" Juniper announced to
herself. It didn't matter if she had
nobody to play with. Because
Juniper Kai was born to be a spy.
And spies work alone."
In yet another story of a child who is feeling ignored, we meet Juniper Kai. She sees herself as an
accomplished spy, with all the necessary paraphernalia to make her an undisputed success. She's got the goods: finds the clues, sports any number of disguises, owns a James Bond spy camera, follows a set of code-breaking manuals, and even uses a listening device to capture her parents' conversations. She hopes these will hold her in good stead as she tries to discover what is going on with all the changes in their house: Mom is tired, Dad is busy, and the two are always whispering to each other. She can no longer count on them to act as her assistants.
Juniper Kai is on the case! She doesn't need help. She will do it herself, as all good spies do.
"With her best Spy-O-Scope,
Juniper observed Dad in the guest room.
He seemed to be building something.
it looked more like a jail than a fort.
But why would Dad build a jail?"
The clues might give the game away for astute and observant readers, but it requires of Juniper some demanding sleuthing to solve the case. Discouraged when undivided attention to the case at hand provides no answers, she is about to admit defeat. Then, a perimeter alarm alerts her to her father stowing boxes in the garden shed. She's back on the case, using her best investigative techniques.
"She took her lock pick set out of her pocket and unlocked the shed.
She slowly opened the door, turned on her Spy-De-LIGHT, and ...
... a different kind of light flashed on in Juniper's brain."
Case solved!
Adventure, humor, and a surprise twist at the end make this an engaging tale. The digital illustrations add drama and an element of adventure at every turn. The spy gear will attract attention and ardent wishes from young readers to own some of their own. Do I see a Halloween costume in the making?
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