• Home
  • Style Guides
  • Blog
  • Author Index
    • A - H Index
    • I - P Index
    • Q - Z Index
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Subscribe
READING STYLE GUIDE

It's a Mystery

1/2/2020

0 Comments

 

The Body under the Piano: Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen
​by Marthe Jocelyn ill by Isabelle Follath

"being quoted by a journalist in reference to a murder is not an accomplishment to please your mother"
Picture
Twelve-year-old Agatha Caroline Morton, an inquisitive girl living in nineteenth century England is never without her notebook, recording her observations and penning verses. She lives with her rather eccentric grandmother, her grief-stricken mother still mourning her husband's death, nursemaid Charlotte, and dog Tony.
The drama begins when Aggie discovers a corpse under the dance studio piano. It's the body of obnoxious Mrs. Irma Eversham, mother of Aggie's classmate Rose and sister-in-law to the dance instructor.
Aggie wonders: who would want to murder Mrs. Eversham? (Well, almost everyone.) Why would someone want to eliminate this odious woman? (Possibly anger, revenge, or greed?) How did she die? ( Was it rodent poison?)
Not one to sit around and wring her hands, Aggie sets out to uncover the truth and determine the culprit's identity. She enlists the assistance of a new friend, Belgian refugee Hector Perot.
The murderer could be any of the individuals attending a recital at the dance hall. Mrs. Eversham was not well-liked. She bullied her daughter, alienated her sister-in-law, had little use for the neighboring hotel manager’s son who had his eye on her daughter, and publicly shouted at the young gardener. ​​It's up to Aggie and Hector to piece together the clues and determine the identity of the culprit.
Quiet, shy Aggie possesses a wild imagination. She peppers her account with elaborate flights of fancy.  This interior monologue is dripping with melodrama. Great fun to read aloud!
She envisions disposing of a corpse:
​​"chopped up in a suitcase, shoveled into a well, hurled from a clifftop, locked in a cupboard."
She suspects that an angry acquaintance must be;
​"as steamed as a runaway train, as spiky as a hothouse cactus, as fierce as a stampeding rhinoceros, ready to erupt like a volcano..."
Like Agatha Christi, Jocelyn plants several red herrings throughout that will keep readers puzzling. Early on, I identified the person that I was confident was the culprit. Faulty assumption. On rereading, I found that there were numerous clues sprinkled throughout the story that I had overlooked. There is also a carefully disguised identity. Unlike the intrepid Aggie and Hector, I failed to piece all the evidence together. This is one of the joys of classic murder mysteries. One must parse the clues to determine which are worth noting and those that may be misleading,
Jocelyn ratchets up the tension with a nail-biting conclusion. Aggie sets out on a perilous mission, hoping to learn the truth. She uncovers a long-hidden secret that will expose the perpetrator. Things get ugly. Very ugly. Aggie finds herself alone on a dark deserted beach, locked inside a wooden box, and tossed into the frigid sea.
"I only wanted a very small adventure"
The Body Under the Piano: Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen is a classic "whodunit" that will introduce young readers to the thrill of reading a murder mystery with an intriguing plot, an ensemble of possible suspects, and "hidden in plain sight” clues which invite would-be sleuths to join in the search to discover the criminal. More Aggie Morton mysteries please.
Follath captures the personalities of the major players with a deft hand. I frequently referred to these portraits of leading characters. Very helpful.
Picture
Picture

Meet Agatha Christi

Picture
This very British, very charming murder mystery is a clearly a homage to the great detective novelist Agatha Christi. ​Born in Torquay in 1890, she taught herself to read at the age of five. She was an accomplished pianist. However her shyness prevented her from performing for those she did not know. Christie's books have sold over a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation.
Uncorrected copy provided by publisher.
Pub date: February 4, 2020  Publisher: Tundra Books  ISBN: 978-0735265462
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author/Illustrator Index
    Get the latest updates delivered directly to you inbox:

    powered by TinyLetter

    Category

    All
    Activity Books
    Adventure
    Africa
    Alphabet Books
    Animals
    Anthology
    Art
    Asian
    Audiobook
    Author-interview
    Author-profile
    Awards
    Bilingual
    Biography
    Black Lives
    Board Books
    Book Awards
    Book-club
    Book Stores
    Book Trailers
    Classroom Connections
    Comics
    Coming Of Age
    Cosplay
    Creativity
    Diversity
    Early Readers
    Fairy Tale
    Family
    Fantasy
    Food
    Friendship
    Girls
    Grahic Novel
    Grief
    Halloween
    Historical Fiction
    Horror
    Humor
    Immigration
    Informational-books
    Latinx
    Lgbtq
    Library-activities
    Literacy
    Magical-realism
    Maker
    Math
    Memoir
    Middle Grade
    Music
    Mystery
    Mythology
    Native American
    Nonfiction
    Own Voices
    Picture Book
    Poetry
    Prose-and-comic
    Read Aloud
    Reading
    Reading Writing Connection
    Realistic Fiction
    Romance
    Self Acceptance
    Series
    Social Issues
    Sports
    STEM
    Storytelling
    Texas Connection
    The-margin-project
    Translation
    Wordless
    Ya Lit

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015

    Barbara Moon

    I like talking about books and  interesting ideas. I like thinking about how books affect my life. Not particularly interested in giving out stars or in rating books. 

    Audio Publishers Association
    2013, - present  Audies judge 
    American Library Association Book Awards and Lists 
    ​2017 YALSA Award Nominating Committee
    2016 Excellence in Nonfiction 
    2014 Margaret Edwards Award
    2012 Odyssey Awards.  
    2009, 2010, 2011 Great Graphic Novels for Teens.

    Professional Reader
    Picture
    Frequently Auto-Approved

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.