The Great Shelby Holmes
by Elizabeth Eulberg
Eulberg, E. (2016). The great Shelby Holmes. New York, NY: Bloomsbury.
After the separation of his parents, 11 year-old John Watson has just moved to a New York City apartment with his mom. After living on numerous Army bases throughout his life, John is used to having to start over with new friends, schools, and such, but this big city is somewhat of a culture shock. Will he ever be able to make friends in a place like this? Enter 9 year-old Shelby Holmes...Detective Shelby Holmes that is. Within about two minutes of meeting her, she's practically figured out their life story and solved the mystery of the broken mirror. John can't help but be intrigued, even if she is a bit on the young side. A reluctant Shelby ends up showing John around the city and he's amazed that everyone seems to know and admire this girl. What is her deal? It's definitely not her friendly disposition, as she's actually kind of rude with a know it all attitude. It turns out Shelby has helped all of these people in one way or another with particular cases, including some that the police couldn't even solve. While she may not be a great friend, hanging out with her has to be more interesting that sitting alone at home unpacking boxes. As the pair are out one morning walking Shelby's dog, Tamra, a girl in Shelby's grade, approaches and exclaims that her dog has gone missing 3 days before the big dog show. Shelby, with John in tow, makes it her mission to find the missing dog, leaving no stone unturned. When she begins crawling around on the floor and acting like a dog, John begins to wonder what he has gotten himself into. Perhaps he should just ditch Shelby and go play basketball with Tamra's brother Zane and his friends instead. But he's got to admit that this case has gotten interesting and he really wants to know who took the missing dog. Plus maybe Shelby could actually use his help, not to mention a friend of her own. With some persistent sleuthing and a bit of teamwork, these two not only find Tamra's dog, but something much more important...a friend.
Shelby's use of language would make this book an excellent choice for working on vocabulary. It would also make a great choice for teaching lessons on making predictions. This Texas Bluebonnet Nominee, the first in a series, would most likely be enjoyed by students in grades 3-6.
Book Trailer for The Great Shelby Holmes
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