“A garage sale.”

From Gillian Goerz’s Shirley & Jamila Save Their Summer.

At the start of summer vacation, ten-year-old Jamila not only has to about being the new kid in school next year, but she also has to dread the science camp that her parents are going to force her to attend instead of letting her play basketball all summer. However, all that changes when Jamila meets the slightly odd trench coat-wearing Shirley. Even though Shirley says she can help them both, Jamila doesn’t have much hope for a fun summer until Shirley magically convinces Jamila’s mom to let Jamila skip science camp to spend the summer at the nearby basketball court. Jamila’s mom only has the rules that the two girls spend the day at the court, not walking around town unsupervised. For the first few days, Jamila loves every minute of her summer arrangement with Shirley, even though Shirley never seems to notice the basketball game. Though when a little boy shows up one day, begging an unmoving Shirley for help, Jamila finally realizes that Shirley is a child detective that has been using the basketball court as an unofficial office for kids in need. Even though finding the boy’s missing gecko requires breaking her mom’s rule, Jamila is eager to Shirley in action, so the two leave the court to solve the mystery… even though it could cost them their summer.

This modern Sherlock and Watson story is captivating and quick, both for fans of the iconic characters and those new to the mysteries. Goerz creates characters that are realistic and unique, but most of all relatable for young readers. As the mystery develops, readers will hungrily devour Shirley & Jamila Save Their Summer in preparation for the next book.