Young Cam Jansen and the Lions' Lunch Mystery [Hardcover]

David A. Adler (Author), Susanna Natti (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up | Series: Young Cam Jansen

A field trip to the zoo seems like fun for Cam Jansen and her classmates— until lunchtime. Everyone else’s sandwich is safely delivered, but Danny can’t find his anywhere! Did the lions eat it? Only Cam and her amazing memory can crack this easy-to-read mystery.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

On a class visit to the zoo, Cam Jansen uses her photographic memory and her reasoning skills to help her mischievous friend Danny find his lost lunch bag. As in the other titles in the lively Viking Easy-to-Read mystery series, the approachable design will pull new readers right into the story, with clear type and bright, detailed, ink-and-watercolor pictures on every page. A final memory game invites readers to look closely at a picture and then turn the page to answer questions about what they remember. The warm story of friendship and mischief will appeal to kids as much as will the clever detective work. Rochman, Hazel
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author

David A. Adler is the author of more than 175 children’s books. He lives in Woodmere, New York.

Susanna Natti illustrates the Lionel series by Stephen Krensky. She lives in Bedford, Massachusetts.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Viking Juvenile (May 17, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670061719
• ISBN-13: 978-0670061716
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,348,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I write both fiction and non-fiction. I begin my fiction with the main character. The story comes later. Of course, since I'll be spending a lot of time with each main character, why not have him or her be someone I like? Andy Russell is based, loosely, on a beloved member of my family. He's fun to write about and the boy who inspired the character is even more fun to know. Cam Jansen is based even more loosely on a classmate of mine in the first grade whom we all envied because we thought he had a photographic memory. Now, especially when my children remind me of some promise they said I made, I really envy Cam's amazing memory. I have really enjoyed writing about Cam Jansen and her many adventures. For my books of non-fiction I write about subjects I find fascinating. My first biography was Our Golda: The Life of Golda Meir. To research that book, I bought a 1905 set of encyclopedia. Those books told me what each of the places Golda Meir lived in were like when she lived there. I've written many other biographies, including books about Martin Luther King, Jr; George Washington; Abraham Lincoln; Helen Keller; Harriet Tubman; Anne Frank; and many others in my Picture Book Biography series. I've been a Yankee and a Lou Gehrig fan for decades so I wrote Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man. It's more the story of his great courage than his baseball playing. Children face all sorts of challenges and it's my hope that some will be inspired by the courage of Lou Gehrig. I am working now on another book about a courageous man, Janusz Korczak. My book One Yellow Daffodil is fiction, too, but it's based on scores of interviews I did with Holocaust survivors for my books We Remember the Holocaust, Child of the Warsaw Ghetto, The Number on My Grandfather's Arm, and Hiding from the Nazis. The stories I heard were compelling. One Yellow Daffodil is both a look to the past and to the future, and expresses my belief in the great spirit and strength of our children. I love math and was a math teacher for many years, so it was fun for me to write several math books including Fraction Fun, Calculator Riddles, and Shape Up! Fun with Triangles and Other Polygons. In my office I have this sign, "Don't Think. Just Write!" and that's how I work. I try not to worry about each word, even each sentence or paragraph. For me stories evolve. Writing is a process. I rewrite each sentence, each manuscript, many times. And I work with my editors. I look forward to their suggestions, their help in the almost endless rewrite process. Well, it's time to get back to dreaming, and to writing, my dream of a job. David A. Adler is the author of more than 175 children's books, including the Young Cam Jansen series. He lives in Woodmere, New York.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A great mystery series for young readers, January 13, 2011

By 

Z Hayes (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Young Cam Jansen and the Lions' Lunch Mystery (Hardcover)

My kindergartner has recently started reading chapter books, though she continues to read readers and these Cam Jansen readers are among her favorites. This book is a Level 2 book which is recommended for ages 5-8, Grades K-2. The story is divided into several chapters and is illustrated throughout which motivates young readers to develop an interest in the story.

Cam Jansen is an interesting character (personally I find her to be a refreshing character compared to the annoying Junie B. Jones character which my daughter likes). The reason for her nickname Cam is because she has an excellent memory like a camera (hence the shortened nickname "Cam"), and uses this talent to solve mysteries. Cam is usually accompanied by her good friends in solving mysteries relating to everyday things. In this story, Cam helps her friend Danny find his missing lunch during a field trip to the zoo. The story is engaging and makes an excellent reader for young children.