Reviews for The Tangled Web: A Julie Mystery (American Girl Mysteries Series)

The average rating for The Tangled Web: A Julie Mystery (American Girl Mysteries Series) based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2019-11-17 00:00:00 Glenn Andersson This was okay. The mystery here is facts that just don't add up, and why people might pretend to have a different life altogether. Peppered throughout are specific mentions of both San Francisco and 1970s themes: shell-shocked young Vietnam vets, the fight for disability accessibility rights, and the growing popularity of farmers markets/"California cuisine". It still makes me pause for a moment to consider my parents would be peers with Julie's sister Tracy, but time marches on and the youth of seniors today is history. I wasn't originally going to include the mystery books in my American Girl exploration, but figured I may as well, for completionist's sake. I never actually read any of the old mysteries, and looking at Kathryn Reiss's bibliography it looks like she did novels in the historical mystery line that aren't connected to the doll series- am curious about those.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-06-03 00:00:00 William Jones This is a different kind of "mystery," but one that I would have done well to read when I was 9 years old. There is a new girl named Carla at Julie's school. Julie jumps right in and asks Carla if she wants to eat lunch with her. Julie finds Carla fascinating because she has many of the things that Julie wishes she had: a large family, a big house, and a Border Collie named Jack. But in spite of Julie's attempts to be friendly, there are strange things about Carla that just don't make sense. As a adult, I've learned the hard way that when a story doesn't make sense, it's because stuff is being left out, and/or the person is lying. I do wish though, that I could have learned it in a book like this, rather that from actual people I thought were my friends. Julie is quite mature when the truth comes out. I, however, had a lot of unpleasant memories reading this book, knowing what Julie didn't know. It's a good story that is well written and ties together plot elements from this time period: Vietnam Vets, disabled people/access to public buildings; and Thanksgiving/being thankful for what you have. It also skillfully ties in the Painted Ladies, the beautiful old Victorian Houses that San Francisco is famous for, and Farmer's Markets, which I didn't realize came into popularity at this time. Julie is one of my most favorite American Girls because she is basically the age I was in the 1970's, and this is a very well done book about an important topic for young readers.