Review by Booklist Review
Summer vacation has only just begun for twins Lark and Conner Ba, but they've already been in trouble twice. Grandmother suggests they visit the Temple of Secrets, aka the library. They wake their parents at 5 a.m. on library day, but grandmother rescues them from potential parental wrath. What they can't predict is the adventure that will unfold when they finally reach their destination and see the librarian sitting outside crying. She stopped in the park to read, helped a girl try to fly her kite, and, somewhere along the way, lost the key to the library! Spunky Lark leads the effort to solve the mystery of the missing key. In this short chapter-book mystery for emerging readers, Deen introduces a multicultural cast of characters and helps her main character, Lark, deal creatively with her dyslexia. The back pages include Lark's words, explanations of words and phrases she's misspelled or misunderstood. Cutler's black-and-white illustrations add humor to the story. The ending leaves the door open for future adventures for the twins.--Petty, J. B. Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Key words: mixed race. Dyslexic. Twin. Girl. Private investigator. But the real question is: can she find the missing key to the library?Although there are many labels that could be placed on this short chapter books protagonist, none of them matter to the plucky little heroine who loves to read. Lark Ba pops awake at 5:00 a.m. because she and her twin brother, Connor, are going to the library. But Mrs. Robinson has lost the key, and the library is not open! Larks insatiable appetite for learning makes her uniquely qualified to solve this mystery. Deen pens her first chapter book with a simple plot through which Larks character is explored. In first person, Lark explains the names of her paternal, Korean grandmother (Halmoni) and her maternal, Kenyan grandfather (Babu). Cutlers illustrations depict these racial distinctions, but Lark goes through life just like many other sassy little heroines. She doesnt even see the slight when a blonde, white girl named Sophie calls her Baa baa Lark sheep. Brother Connor, with the right amount of eye-rolling, provides the balance to this lively character, and the subjects of race and learning disabilities are incorporated neatly. Endnotes discuss some of the words Lark ponders. Lark is a mixed-race girl debuting a lighthearted series; with a little effort, she may develop into a character with a fan base, like Ramona and Clementine before her. (Fiction. 6-9) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
