Scoop McLaren : Waves of mystery by Helen Castles

Scoop McLaren, a  feisty, thirteen year old journalist/detective is the main character in Scoop McLaren : Waves of mystery. This is a second book starring Scoop. This time she stumbles across a crime involving bribery, corruption and sabotage.

Scoop and her friends live in a coastal town probably on the Australian east coast. A surfing competition is being staged and the prize money is considerable. Scoop's friend Fletch is a champion surfer. Inexplicable and dangerous  things start to happen to him. Surfing events are rigged, people go missing and strange things happen but Scoop and her friend Evie are ever watchful and resourceful. The reader must attend to detail because it is in remembered conversations and tiny, inconsequential events that the mystery is solved. The attentive reader might remember clues along the way and come to their own conclusions. 

The book is narrated in first person by Scoop. Regularly inserted within and between the chapters are news scoops by Scoop as appearing in her online newspaper. 

Helen Castles, the author,  herself a roving news reporter, is  an excellent position to authentically create and describe the action-packed, problem solving approach that characterises Scoop as she pursues crime busting answers and news worthy information.

It is pleasing to see crime/mystery/detective books reemerge onto the children's literature scene. Crime books demand a high level of engagement with text. The motivation for attention to detail and plot for the reader is to try to successfully solve the crime themselves. Reading crime has to develop excellent reading strategies!

This is a light and humorous novel that showcases friendship, loyalty and  intelligent thinking and action on the part of young adolescent protagonists.  It is a very enjoyable read with just the right amount of challenge for would-be crime solvers! Teacher's notes are available.

Themes: Detectives, Mystery, Crime, Surfing, Journalism.

Wendy Jeffrey