Effie is going to have to ask a lot of questions if she wants to get to the bottom of her family feud's with the neighbors. Some have to do with her inventor grandfather. A fun mystery set in Pennsylvania.

Effie Starr Zook Has One More Question was a delightful, quick read. It has everything a good children’s book should: adventure, potential peril, mystery and friendship. As an adult, I figured out most of the mystery before the end of the book, but I think children would be completely surprised. Most of all, I loved the bookstore and the friends the main character made. It’s amazing how big of an effect one young person can have on a town in one short summer!

Effie asks questions. Lots of questions. Lots and lots of questions. And yet the author has drawn this character so well and made her so likeable that you appreciate the fact that is just a kid who needs to be in the know. There is also a mystery afoot as to what exactly happened between two feuding families in the, one of which is Effie's, It helps keep those pages turning. This is a middle grade I look forward to sharing!

I didn't particularly care for this one, though I find it hard to pinpoint any one problem. Effie is not a particularly strong character. She asks a lot of questions, sure, but less because she's curious than because she's ignorant and no one tells her anything. She's got a slightly over active imagination. That's it. Occasionally her questions make people uncomfortable. And she's the most complex character. Most have a single defining characteristic. This means that we start out on weak footing. And the plot feels more like "a bunch of stuff that just happens" than a genuine series of cause and effect events. Effie stumbles onto information. THe resolution is an arbitrary court ruling. If the plot were longer it could develop the characters more, or at least devote more space to the implicit moral dilemmas. Instead we have a halfhearted plot.

Effie was a likable character and the book started off interesting, but the story did not keep me engaged. I was intrigued by the mystery at first, but the plot was not developed enough to keep me interested.

Effie is plopped in the middle of rural Pennsylvania for the summer while her parents fly around the world in a solar-powered plane. At first, the summer looks bleak, but Effie is a master at uncovering the most interesting parts of a dull situation. She spends much of her time questioning those around her, trying to get to the bottom of whatever mystery there is to solve. She uncovers family secrets and examines the oddities all around her. It's hard not to like her, even if she is overstepping the boundaries others set for her.
This is a story about uncovering family secrets and whether hiding things, particularly from children, benefits anyone in the long run. I actually loved this story, though it threw me a couple of times. It made a subtle statement about race, one that is worthwhile to consider after reading. All in all, this was a really interesting, engaging book, one that I will gladly add to my collection at school. It's well written, well paced, and well presented; a real treat.

I started out finding this book charming, but lost interest about halfway through. Did read to the end. Wasn't impressed with the ending, which was trite and implausible.

Because Effie's parents are trying to fly a solar airplane around the world, she has to spend the summer in a small town in Pennsylvania with her Aunt Clare and Uncle Ted. Life is pretty slow and boring, but she does get out to investigate a bit and meet the quirky people in town. A kid her age, Moriah Yoder, wants to befriend her, but his father is set against it, claiming there is bad blood between their families. No one wants to explain any of this to Effie, who is having fun in the town book store, run by Pendleton Odbody, and investigating the museum of Zookiana that is dedicated to her great grandfather, who invented the barf bag, the income from which is what is keeping the family going. When her parents' plane runs into trouble and Effie finds out that the family has money problems, she finally gets some answers to the family secrets.
Strengths: Effie was an interesting character, and she had a fairly upbeat and intact family situation, which is always a relief! I enjoyed her ability to roam around in the summer, and the characters she meets are interesting.
Weaknesses: Rather slow, and the mystery didn't quite grab me.
What I really think: This reminded me of the quirky family stories of Polly Horvath that just did not circulate in my library. Pleasant enough, but don't think I'll buy it.