Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and #NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital ARC of Uncovering a Terrorist: Agent Ryan Dwyer and the Case of the Portland Bomb Plot by Bryan Denson. This book will be released on June 22, 2020. All opinions are my own.

This book covers the FBI investigation of Mohamed Mohamud that was led by Agent Ryan Dwyer. The investigation uncovered that Mohamud was a wannabe terrorist who plotted and attempted to carry out a terrorism attack at the Portland Christmas Tree Lighting on November 26, 2010. The book details Dwyer's investigation as well as the criminal proceedings.

I wanted to read this book because I have lived in Oregon my entire life and was in college, in the Portland area, in 2010, so I found the topic to hit close to home. I think that Denson did a good job of giving insight into the sting operation and that his book allows for discussions on religious terrorism and its effects around the world. The book is very well researched and I liked that it included a photos, a timeline, a glossary, a list of research used, and a section where Denson explains how he wrote the book. I also like that there is a big emphasis on the fact that any individual regardless of their religion can be radicalized and be a terrorist. It emphasizes multiple times that being Muslim does not make you a terrorist and that the version of the religion that Mohamud followed was a radicalized one and that his actions and beliefs do not reflect those of the majority. I think this is an important distinction and conversation to have with younger readers who don't always see gray areas. This was a very engaging text and it is fairly short at around 176 pages. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to students. I do think that they need to be of a certain maturity level for this book and that teachers and parents should also talk with their students about the topics in the book to help them develop a better understanding of them.