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Into the Lion’s Den Plunges a Young Detective into Mystery and Danger
Into the Lion’s Den, by Linda Fairstein, introduces a new kid detective to New York City. Devlin Quick is pretty confident about her detective abilities, even though she’s never cracked a big case—her mother is the police commissioner of New York, and Devlin’s familiar (in principal) with the mechanics of crime solving. So when Liza, the Argentinian exchange student staying with them for the summer, witnesses a crime, Devlin is determined to catch the perpetrator.
The crime is a heinous one (for those who care passionately about old books). Liza witnesses a man cutting a page out of a rare book at the New York Public Library and absconding with it. Devlin’s mom and the librarians are not convinced Liza really saw this happen (12 year olds don’t have much credibility as witnesses), and aren’t much help. But Devlin and her good friend Booker believe Liza, and get to work in true Nancy Drew style to find the criminal and bring him to justice.
With a combination of finely honed internet skills, some useful connections at the New York police department, and her unassailable conviction that coincidences are meaningful, Devlin sets off with her friends to infiltrate (to the extent their age allows) the world of map collecting to trap the thief. The trail of clues successfully leads them to the criminal, and the two girls find themselves in deep danger (literally deep—fleeing a violent criminal in the bowels of an abandoned subway station).
Though the crime is a bibliophile’s nightmare, those who love books will find a friend in Devlin, herself an avid reader and appreciator of libraries. Her relationship with her mother is warm and mutually supportive, and her determination to solve mysteries is given weight by her conviction that she will someday solve the mystery of her father’s death.
This is a good one for any kid who is interested in detective work (Fairstein is also the author of the Alexandra Cooper series of adult crime novels). A tour of the NYPD, ostensibly for Liza’s entertainment, but really part of Devlin’s plan to dig up dirt on her suspects, provides an instructive background in crime solving. It’s also a good introduction to cartography, with interesting information about old maps sprinkled into the story with a deft hand. And it’s a fun look at New York, with many famous landmarks, including the lions who guard the library, providing an engaging backdrop for the mystery.
If you have a young reader of Nancy Drew on hand, ready to read something more contemporary, or a reader who more generally likes to read about kids running freely around a big city finding clues, this is a great pick!
Into the Lion’s Den is on B&N bookshelves now!