The Mystery of the Sock Monkeys

I ran across Elspeth Campbell Murphy's 30 book Three Cousins Detective Club series when I was looking for easy reader chapter books for my 7 1/2 yr old 2nd grade daughter. The Mystery of the Sock Monkeys (#21) paperback just happened to be where we started. The 62 pages are divided into 15 chapters, and the print is medium, not tiny. There are occasional black & white sketch illustrations. Piggybacking on the Young Cousins Mysteries series for ages 4-8, the Three Cousins Detective Club series is categorized as for ages 9-12, but is fine for a younger confident reader who just needs help on the occasional difficult word. The Christian author ties each volume to a Bible verse, & weaves Christian values into the stories. On a wkend vacation, I started reading it to my daughter. She was instantly captivated by the characters & story, & quickly began reading it on her own. 10 yr old cousins, Sarah-Jane, Timothy, & Titus are always alert to suspicious situations , & thrive on following clues to conclusion. In #21, it occurs to them that the rough tough looking & acting motorcycle rider Spider Marley does not seem like the kind of guy who would be frequenting fabric & handicraft shops, or helping out his seamstress aunt. They unravel the real truth behind this interesting character. The stories are entertaining & wholesome & elementary school age appropriate. We will definitely read more, & see about donating some to school & local public libraries.