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And this new adventure is Wendelin Van Draanen's most complex and compelling yet! It's Christmastime in Sammy's hometown of Santa Martina, but some people are being very, very naughty. Pranksters dressed as wise men sabotage the Christmas Parade. In the ensuing chaos, some thugs dognap a prize Pomeranian. Then the Pom's owner blackmails Sammy into finding the dog so she won't have to pay the ransom. Sammy doesn't have to check her list twice to know that these people belong in the naughty column!
But in the course of her search for the doggone dog, Sammy also comes across some characters who are harder to figure: a runaway elf, an embittered old biddy, a puffed-up policeman, and a sneaky Secret Santa. Still, someone's got that dog and whoever it is had better watch out—'cause Sammy Keyes is nosing around...and she's willing to be pretty naughty herself to make sure the bad guys pay.
To quote KLIATT's Jan. 2000 review of the hardcover edition: More Sammy Keyes! Her intelligence and courage continue in this fourth book in the series. Sammy is in the eighth grade, struggling to hide her presence in the senior housing where she lives illegally with her grandmother. In fact, someone is blackmailing her in this mystery, with the threat of exposure and the eviction of her grandmother. So, she is forced to take on the case here: recovering a dog that has been abducted from its owner, an especially obnoxious wealthy woman. The kidnappers are asking for $50,000 or they will kill the beloved pet. The same wonderful supporting cast is here for Sammy, truly memorable people. Her enemies are here as well, especially mean Heather from Sammy's class. And Sammy's mother plans to return home from her quest for success in L.A. in time for Christmas, which makes Sammy feel quite confused. There is an overall theme of the importance of forgiveness in this particular book, as Sammy faces the reality that she isn't ready to forgive her mother. Editor's note: the first three Sammy Keyes mysteries have also just been reissued in paperback. KLIATT Codes: J—Recommended for junior high school students. 1999, Random House/Knopf, 188p, 20cm, 98-54641, $4.99. Ages 13 to 15. Reviewer: Claire Rosser; September 2000 (Vol. 34 No. 5)
| Price | Condition | Delivery | Seller | Action |
| $99.99 | Digital |
| WonderClub |
Anton Demin
reviewed Sammy Keyes and the Runaway Elf on February 04, 2016
Sammy Keyes and the Runaway Elf
I started reading this series when I was in middle school and even though I am a junior in college now, making them it a little beneath my age group, I still eagerly devour each book. The fourth book in the series, Sammy is blackmailed into helping a rich and powerful elderly woman recover her missing dog who was kidnapped at a Christmas parade.
As always, Wendelin Van Draanen displays a great talent for interweaving various subplots in a way that keeps the reader interested and in such a way that they don't get confused or have a hard time keeping track of what is going on.
Sammy faces a whole host of problems here, with the tension of being kicked out of her grandmother's apartment because of Lilia Landvogt's threats and of course the eternal battle with Heather Acosta (although I must say, she did a brilliant job getting back at her---it's amazing how smart and creative she is for her age!). And yet throughout all this I loved how the author showed us that Sammy is a kid too, and like all kids there are new experiences for her to learn and discover. She becomes a mentor to a young child named Elyssa who's father passed away recently, and she helps her come to terms with his death in a way that no one else had been able to. She even learns to forgive and empathize with Mrs. Graybill in ways that she herself never could have imagined. Mrs. Graybill's death was a new experience and milestone for Sammy because it marked her evolution as a character and it showed her becoming becoming more mature. She realized that time can change a person so much that they may not even recognize themselves.
Of course throughout it all she is stuck with the puzzle over who kidnapped Lilia Landvogt's dog and the list of suspects is long, since she is a woman with countless enemies. Even though this is more of a middle-school aged book and the writing is more suited to kids in that age group, I have always enjoyed these books and this one is no different! Once again, Wendelin Van Draanen tells an entertaining, deep, and humorous story as she recounts Sammy's latest adventure!
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