Steal Back the Mona Lisa!

This is a really cute story, and my preschool-aged children really enjoyed it. As a vegetable lover trying to raise vegetable lovers, though, I didn't love that one of Jack's "punishments" was being forced to eat veggies. I just thought I'd mention that for those who might have children not so in love with vegetables.

Steal Back the Mona Lisa was recommended for children 3-5 by our local library. Our daughter wanted to read it repeatedly and didn't want to return it, so we have purchased a copy. Our daughter completely loves this book. In particular, she enjoys spotting the "crooked crooks" in the airplane and in the restaurant. I give the librarians credit and highly recommend this book for other children age 3-5. Good book for boys or girls -- would work as a birthday gift for both!

I found this on my library's "new books" shelf, and my boy and I loved it. Great for kids as young as 3-4 (like mien), up to maybe 9-10? Jack is a boy who wakes up to discover he is a secret agent. Some crooks have stolen the Mona Lisa, and he must use his gadgets and his wits to get it back. (Actually, Jack's probably just sleeping. ... Or is he?) We liked it so much, we'll buy another copy for the birthday of my boy's pal, named Jack. (BTW, kids who like this book might also enjoy "Agent A to Agent Z".) We read it again this morning at breakfast, and we both agreed Meghan McCarthy should turn this into a series. Jack is a great adventure character for young kids, and those are very hard to find. Tintin is way too old. Dora is fine if you're 2 or 3, and maybe Diego to 4, but they're too didactic, constrained, and nowhere near as fun as Jack. Please, Meghan, give us another!