Customer Reviews

A Spy on the Home Front: A Molly Mystery (American Girl Mysteries)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Molly McIntire is spending two weeks at her grandparents' farm. As always, she spends most of her time with her friend Anna, who lives on the next farm. But WWII has brought a change to the community: Anna's parents, who are German, are suspected of being loyal to the Fatherland. Rumors abound and also affect Anna's older brother Max, who works at a nearby airfield. Then Molly's aunt Eleanor is involved when propaganda flyers are found hidden in her airplane when she makes a stop at the airfield while shuttling it to Texas. Could Max be the culprit? Or is it someone else at the airfield? Molly is determined to find out.

This is a good historical mystery for younger girls, who will learn some history painlessly--in fact, adults will learn things as well; I had never heard about the pro-Nazi group the Silver Shirts mentioned in the book. I also enjoyed the way everything wasn't wrapped up at the end of the story; pretty much like real life.

The year is 1944, and nine-year-old Molly McIntire is ecstatic to have the opportunity to spend a full two weeks at her Grammy and Granpa's farm. Like the previous summers visiting her grandparents, Molly spends the majority of her time with her very good summer-buddy Anna, a German girl. The two girls spend the hot, summer days swimming, eating cookies, and getting into all sorts of mischief. But this summer, things aren't so happy-go-lucky. When Molly's Aunt Eleanor, a pilot for the army, flies into town with a handful of propaganda fliers in her plane. Soon Anna's older brother, Max, is taken in by the FBI as the main suspect in the case. Molly now knows that it's up to her and Anna to solve the mystery, and clear Max's name, or else Anna may never see her beloved older brother again.

I have been reading the AMERICAN GIRL books since I was about 5-years-old, and even as I got older, my interest in the series never dwindled. So you can imagine how happy I was to hear that PLEASANT COMPANY was releasing the new AMERICAN GIRL MYSTERIES series. Molly, as always, is an exciting character whom middle readers will love, and identify with. Alison Hart has done a fantastic job with this mystery, and I can't wait to read the rest of the AMERICAN GIRL MYSTERIES, as I'm sure they are just as fascinating.

Erika Sorocco
Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper

This is another in the History Mystery series from American Girl, in which a young American girl is confronted by a mystery that will test her resolve and her ability. This is another story of Molly McIntire, a ten-year-old girl living on the home front during World War 2.

It's summer, and Molly is spending two weeks on her grandparent's farm. But, a dark cloud appears when Molly realizes that her friend's family is being harassed because they are immigrants from Germany. The situation goes from bad to worse when Molly's aunt, a WASP (Women's Air Service Pilot) is arrested by the FBI for carrying anti-war propaganda in her airplane. How did the leaflets get into the plane, and who put them there? This is a mystery that Molly must get to the bottom of...and before she leaves for home on Sunday!

Overall, my fourteen-year-old daughter and I found this to be a great book. The mystery is very well written, keeping you wondering just who is up to what. Also, I liked the view that the book gave into the American home front during WW2, and the fact that the author handled it without being heavy handed.

So, if you have a younger reader who likes a good mystery, then get this book. It is a wonderful addition to the Molly series of American Girls books, which my daughter and I both highly recommend.

Purchased for my 11 year old granddaughter who LOVES books by this author. I only wish there were more, especially in the "horse" category.

This was a great book. i own all the ag misterys(samantha, molly,kaya,and kit). it also teaches kids that even if we are difrent we can still be friends.

The story is exciting, and the ending bittersweet, which is quite fitting given that the book concerns the internment of German-Americans as well as German citizens during WWII.

However, the historical notes section of the book is quite troubling. Opposition to American entry into the war prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, as well as general political opposition to Roosevelt, is equated with support of Nazism. Furthermore, Hitler is described as wanting to eliminate all who were not white Christians, when in fact Hitler asserted the superiority of the German race and despised the Christian religion. Does the author not know that millions of Christians were also killed by Hitler including those of the Jewish "race" who were Christian converts or even Christians of mixed ancestry?
American Girl is a big enough business that they could hire a decent editorial department. Our daughters deserve history which presents fair arguments instead of the kind of propaganda that would make Joseph Goebbels proud.