Reviews

Nine-year-old Christina and her seven-year-old brother Grant, along with their grandmother Mimi and grandfather Papa, are visiting on the Louisville, KY, horse farm of their friend, ten-year-old Sara, and her family. Tanner, Sara's twelve-year-old cousin, is also there. Mimi and Papa had brought their grandchildren to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby, but mysterious things begin to happen. First, a horse belonging to Sara's dad disappears, and then two jockeys are missing. Something strange is going on! The four children look for clues that will help them solve the mystery and save the race. Carole Marsh began writing mysteries for children in 1979. She decided to set her books in real places, where people could go and visit after reading the story, and use real people. In her first books, she used her own children, Michele and Michael, as the main characters and recruited a couple of kids from the book's location. In her later books, the main characters are her grandchildren, Christina and Grant, who accompany their grandmother as she does research for her books. Marsh wanted to produce books that were both educational and fun. I think that she has admirably succeeded. I had heard of the Carole Marsh Mysteries and seen them recommended before but never read any until this one. We were visiting at a state park in Kentucky, and this one was offered for sale in the gift shop, so I bought it to have something to read. I was glad that I did. It is Number 15 out of at least 16, but the back cover says, "Kids, read all 20 books in any order!" It was very interesting to learn a little about Churchill Downs, the Kentucky Derby Museum, the Louisville Slugger Museum, the Belle of Louisville, and the Falls of the Ohio as described in the book. In addition, there are several follow-up activities in the back of the book. I like mysteries, and I really enjoyed this one. -- Wayne S Walker "Stories for Children Magazine" (08/13/2008)