The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow

With all the people Sophie couldn’t trust in this story, I can understand why she didn’t trust the detective—she couldn’t even trust the police, who were supposed to be honest officers. I’m glad, though, that the gang gets to stay together and that Bill’s uncle will now think differently of him. I also hope that Joe and Lily become a couple. I thought it was great that the author made Sophie and Lily friends, even though Sophie was now poor, because in the real world, that might not have happened. I also think this book could be very encouraging to younger girls, because you rarely hear about female detectives in juvenile mysteries—unless you read Nancy Drew, which is the only female detective I can usually think of. Most of the time, you hear about Sherlock Holmes or other male detectives. Give the girls a chance!