The Peacock Detectives by Carly Nugent
Published by HarperCollins on January 14, 2020
ISBN: 0062896709
Pages: 288
Genres: Mystery, Realistic Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads

This story takes place in Australia. Cassie, the girl telling the story, lives with her parents and her fourteen year old sister Diana. The novel begins with the neighbor’s peacocks escaping and Cassie starting to write this story. Cassie is eleven years old and good at noticing things. She found her neighbor’s peacocks when they escaped the last time so she is ready to do it again. Cassie’s father is a high school English teacher who has given her many tips about writing. Cassie shares these writing tips throughout her story. Jonas is her best friend and helps her try to find the missing peacocks. He is very good with science and math facts. Cassie knows a lot about reading and writing. In many ways they are opposites. Cassie notices that her family is changing. Diana has become a vegetarian and is interested in Buddhist meditation. Her mother starts cooking differently, her father is acting strangely, and her interaction with her grandfather has been altered. There is much more to this story than finding the missing peacocks. The variety of themes in this book include adoption, mental illness, bullying, friendship, death, family and marriage issues, etc. Although some of these are heavy topics, the book is written in a charming and sensitive manner. I highly recommend this well written novel for young readers 10-12 years old. Reviewed by Kris Zuidema, retired school librarian, Standish