Top 10 Crime Fiction for Youth: 2009.

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Top 10 Crime Fiction for Youth: 2009

In a nod to the classic art-heist subgenre, Alexander Calder, Albrecht Dürer, and Rembrandt all figure into this year’s crop of the best mysteries for youth. Newcomers to the mystery scene, including fan favorites Snicket and Green, help round out this list of the best crime fiction reviewed in the past 12 months.

1. Bog Child By Siobhan Dowd.
   
   
   (children books, sci-fi, teens)
   
   "After a girl is found preserved in a bog, the mystery of who she is and how she died provides a window into the 1980s troubles of Northern Ireland ravaging Fergus Crane’s family. "
   
   


2. The Calder Game By Blue Balliett.
   
   
   (children books (Ages 9-12), children books, sci-fi)
   
   "Mobile sculpture, hedge mazes, and word games all figure into this thoughtful stumper, in which young Calder Pillay (who shares a name with the famous artist) goes missing in England."
   
   


3. The Composer Is Dead By Lemony Snicket
   
   
   (children books (Ages 4-8), children books, sci-fi, teens)
   
   "When the composer is found murdered, a blustery detective questions all the sections of the orchestra, allowing Snicket to deliver his charmingly snide humor as well as a sly introduction to the crafting and butchering of classical music."
   
   


4. The Crossroads By Chris Grabenstein
   
   
   (children books (Ages 9-12), children books, sci-fi)
   
   "This modern ghost story incorporates high-velocity action into a creepy psychological thriller, sending 11-year-old Zack Jennings on a collision course with a haunted intersection and a murderous tree. "
   
   


5. Masterpiece By Elise Broach
   
   
   (children books, teens)
   
   "The involving world of art history and the miniature world of arthropods meet in this story of two fast friends, a boy and a beetle, who get caught up in a plot to heist a Dürer masterpiece from the Metropolitan Museum."
   
   


6. The Mystery Of The Third Lucretia By Susan Runholt
   
   
   (sci-fi, children books, teens)
   
   "A visit to an art museum draws best friends Kari and Lucas into an international forgery scheme with a previously unknown Rembrandt at its center. "
   
   


7. Paper Towns By John Green
   
   
   (children books, teens)
   
   "Of course, Margo Roth Spiegelman would have to go missing right after reconnecting with Quentin on an all-night caper of epic proportions. Now it’s up to him to decipher the series of clues she left behind, revealing a very different Margo than Quentin had imagined. "
   
   


8. The Red Blazer Girls: The Ring Of Rocamadour By Michael D. Beil
   
   
   (children books (Ages 9-12), children books, adventure, sci-fi)
   
   "Three seventh-grade girls at a private school on the Upper East Side find themselves on a scavenger hunt wrapped in clues about religion, literature, and math, with a museum-quality treasure at its end. "
   
   


9. Sammy Keyes And The Cold Hard Cash By Wendelin Van Draanen
   
   
   (children books (Ages 9-12), children books, sci-fi, children books series)
   
   "In this exceptional entry in a consistent series, troublecentric Sammy finds herself suddenly in possession of a wad of cash, a windfall that leads to both mystery and mayhem."
   
   


10. What I Saw And How I Lied By Judy Blundell
    
    
    (sci-fi, children books, teens)
    
    "This noirish historical thriller, in which 15-year-old Evie questions her relationship with her parents and a flirtatious ex-GI, explores myriad issues of post–World War II America, deftly woven into a girl’s crushing coming-of-age."
    
    


Source:
http://www.booklistonline.com

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