A Dastardly Plot: A Perilous Journey of Danger & Mayhem, Book 1
By Mary Eisenhart,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Zany retro adventure tackles discrimination, evil schemes.
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What's the Story?
It's 1883 in New York. Molly and Emmett, a couple of poor but resourceful 12-year-olds, stumble upon A DASTARDLY PLOT -- though they're not sure whether it involves robots, death machines, or some other villainous doings. Also unknown, just exactly what inventors Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison have to do with this. It all has something to do with the upcoming New York World's Fair, which is a sore subject because Molly's inventor mom isn't allowed to show her work there. Things keep getting crazier, as a thick-accented Scottish crime lord and his henchmen, a society of women inventors, a mad scientist, and a posse of singing robots get into the act.
Is It Any Good?
Christopher Healy launches a wild new series set in 1883 New York, with two resourceful 12-year-olds trying to save the world from wacky inventors. Or maybe help the inventors save the world. The orphan police, the immigration authorities, and two warring gangs of inept criminals add to the craziness, as do a society of (unsung) women inventors and the kids' other allies in foiling A Dastardly Plot. Not all readers will have the patience for all the looniness, with a side of social justice, but there are some great moments setting the stage for future plot developments.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about stories that are set in a different time and place but deal with things that are also important today. Do the problems Molly and Emmett deal with in A Dastardly Plot resemble things that happen to you and your friends? Does seeing them in a story give you a different perspective on your own situation?
What do you know about historic characters in this book, like Chester A. Arthur (who's the U.S. president at the time) and inventors Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell? Do you want to find out more about them after reading this?
When you've been treated unfairly, and then you find out other people you know are getting the same treatment, does that make it better or worse? Does it give you better options for fixing the problem?
Book Details
- Author: Christopher Healy
- Genre: Adventure
- Topics: Adventures , History , Robots
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Walden Pond Press
- Publication date: September 25, 2018
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 8 - 12
- Number of pages: 384
- Available on: Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, iBooks, Kindle
- Last updated: November 30, 2020
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