Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Surveillance, cybercrime, smuggling in wacky tween romp.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
Stuck in a wheelchair thanks to two broken legs, going to school on Zoom, and not allowed to leave the house, 12-year-old Carter Peregrine is bored out of his skull until he learns how to access public webcams all over his town to SNOOP on what's going on. His dad suggests that it was staring at screens (which is what Carter was doing when his little brother plowed into him on the ski run) that might be the issue and that Carter might want to dial it back a bit, but no. Soon Carter has moved on to hacking into private webcams. From there he takes to stealing his photographer mom's expensive drone. There's not much in Sterling Township, North Carolina, that escapes his attention, and there are suspicious goings-on everywhere.
Is It Any Good?
This classic Gordon Korman tale finds a hapless middle school hero making regrettable, hilarious decisions and getting hard-won life lessons: Carter, sidelined by broken legs, discovers surveillance. There's never a dull moment in Snoop as a nerdy 12-year-old falls deeper and deeper into the world of webcams and is soon seeing things he wishes he hadn't. Also things he thinks need to be stopped, but how to explain what he knows? Plus, what if his mom finds out he's been using her drone? Life is complicated. But never dull.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about stories like Snoop, where the lead character is secretly keeping an eye on a whole lot of people and places that don't know they're being watched. What do you think about what Carter is doing? Do you think this will be a more popular storytelling theme now that there seem to be cameras everywhere?
Have you ever seen something you wish you hadn't, because you were happier not knowing about it? What happened, and how did it turn out? (Did it turn out you misunderstood what you saw or heard, and maybe got it all wrong?)
Have you ever had a disabling injury—temporary or permanent? How did it change your life? What new skills did you have to learn?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Humor
- Topics : STEM , Family Stories ( Siblings ) , School ( Middle School ) , Animals ( Wild Animals )
- Character Strengths : Curiosity , Empathy , Perseverance
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Scholastic Press
- Publication date : July 1, 2025
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 9 - 12
- Number of pages : 208
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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