Member Reviews

This is a fun chapter book for children, in which Mina and her friends have a new mystery to solve. This is book 2 of the series, and this time around some animals and pets have gone missing, so Mina and her friends have to find out what has happened to them. The text and the graphics of the book are in a diary style, which I liked. Highly recommended!

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book.

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This book is great for easy chapter book readers. The main character is so cute and you can't help but like her. The illustrations do a good job helping tell the story. It is a good book to challenge readers with some challenging words.

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It's cute, and the large fonts make for fast reading. I don't think it stands out but it's always refreshing to see a nonwhite kid as the protagonist.

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Mina's second adventure is just as funny - if not funnier - than her first. Told once again from the POV of a protagonist whose age is presumed to be around 8 or 9. As with The Case of the Disgusting School Dinners (Mina Mistry Investigates #1), the book uses an abundance of illustrations and eye-popping fonts to bring the story to life. Mina continues to be exasperated by her friend Holly, and is once again on the scent of a mystery, this time concerning missing pets. Young readers will no doubt love trying to solve the case before Mina is able to, and there are just enough little twists and turns to keep them engaged. Everything I liked about Book #1 is here, from the witty asides to the reader, to Ellie O'Shea's fantastic illustrations. I've said it before, and I'll say it again - if you enjoy reading Walliams, I heartily recommend you read Mina Mistry Investigates (instead).

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I have mixed feelings on the book, but it's more likely not one I would suggest that my students read. All the varying font might get the attention of young readers, but it was also a bit strange. I couldn't quite figure out why certain things were in bold, whereas others weren't. Granted, a child may not be as concerned with this, it was still something that came to mind. I liked the pictures and I think there was a good mix of written word to pictures for this age range. I enjoy mysteries and think it's a fun genre for all ages, but I thought that this particular mystery (likely unintentionally) made light of animal cruelty and pet well-being. This is one that may be written in an engaging way for young students, but it both admonished animal cruelty (good) and made light of it somehow in the same book.

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3.7 Stars
The book is a part of a series where Mina Mistry, a cute little school girl, plays a detective to solve crimes suitable for her age. The book was fun to read, though the plotline seemed a little farfetched.
The illustrations were really nice, giving Mini a top knot and messy hair. I love that hairdo. The characters and pets are diverse, and there is obviously a message about animal care. This is the kind of book kids would like to pick up and read on their own. The mystery part is going to attract them and keep them hooked.
Overall, it’s a fun read.
Thank you, NetGalley and Sweet Cherry Publishing, for the ARC.

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A cute middle grade novel for kids who love mysteries and pets.
This book easily reads at a Grade 3 elementary level and advanced Grade 2 readers would quite enjoy the story. There is enough silliness in the book to keep young readers entertained, like the crazy themed weeks their elementary teachers create for Mina’s school.
Mina Mistry is a likeable character. There is diversity of characters (and pets) in this mystery. Her best friend’s mom is a bit over the top, but then it may appeal to young readers.
Thankfully there aren’t scary parts for young readers who may be sensitive to the paranormal, violence or other triggers that seem to fill the bookstores these days.
A clean, fun, simple read.
I received an ecopy from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

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This book is about Mina, a girl who attends to elementary school and in her school, there are weeks with specific themes. The book begins with the week of the pets and the mystery is presented when some of the pets begin to disappear.
It is a book that helps children to think and try to solve the mystery with Mina.
For me, as an adult, the book is sometimes implausible, but it is entertaining. The drawings are cute and the story has a good plot.
It's the second book and I didn't know it lol, but you can understand and follow the story perfectly without having read the first book.

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The Case of the Disappearing Pets is a cute children’s mystery. It is written in a way that middle graders will be able to follow and enjoy. There is diversity in the characters. The mystery involves missing pets and deals with the premise that things may not truly be as they seem. A nice quick, fun read.

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First sentence: Like every year, at school the first week of October is Showcase Your Pets week.

Premise/plot: Mina Snotbridge (aka Mina Mistry) is a young girl who solves mysteries when she's not hanging out with her friends. In this chapter book, Mina is trying to discover WHAT happened to all the pets in town. A handful of her classmates have had pets disappear including her very best friend. (Holly's hamster, Harriet, is MISSING.) Who has taken all the pets? Was there foul play?

My thoughts: This chapter book for elementary-aged students is a fun and light mystery. The book has a lot of illustrations and uses a fun layout--the chapters are log entries in her case book.

The book is a little over-the-top at times, but it's all in good fun. (For example, Harriet the Hamster has a LARGE wardrobe with plenty of accessories.) Older readers may wonder why the first thought is that someone has kidnapped the hamster instead of the hamster just escaping from the cage and is now loose in the house. But, of course, that would be a less fun mystery to solve!

I liked this one well enough.

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This second book in this series does just what it should do, in regards to keeping up the form of the previous – large print size and vibrant font use for reluctant readers to get a sense of satisfaction and pride, good illustrative quality, and again a no-nonsense straight in-to the story without yacking about the situation, format or the prequel. Our narrator is a wannabe investigator, who helped work out why her school was doling out junk food at every lunchtime, but now has a host of missing – and blatantly stolen – pets to look into. Yes, things are generally ramping up in intensity, which again is how the series should progress – we're gaining more knowledge of side characters, we're seeing more of the same but firmly different, and we're finding more extreme sports we're told the heroine's stuffed panda likes reading about. Newcomers to this kind of book may well be surprised at how slight a plot you can get away with when writing a 'thriller' for the primary school audience, but this actually is more twisty and satisfying than some. I could have done without the comedic callback being about vomit, but on the whole this does add to my verdict upon reading the first book, that these will be a success with their target readers.

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