4 out of 4 stars
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In Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Snoopy Cat, Book 7 of The Inca Book Series by R.F. Kristi, we follow Inca, who is a famous detective cat in France and England, her human mom, her siblings, Cara, Fromage, and their pet hamster, Charlotte on vacation in Sri Lanka. Shortly after arriving, their human
mom reads in the newspaper that an antique sword is stolen from a nearby museum. Their neighbors from London, Solo, who is a world-famous detective and his dog, and fellow detective, Terrence are invited by the museum director to help solve the case, which means Inca and the gang also help, along with some new friends. They meet Rani, the turtle and Meena, the elephant at the beach.
I liked the pictures. They were cute, but didn't take up all the space, which made more room for the story. It had some good lessons, like tolerance and cooperation. I would give a specific example, but it would contain spoilers, at least for cooperation. Terrence is dog, but they accept him in the group, even though they are cats because they all enjoy mysteries and respect him as a fellow detective.
I thought it was a really beautiful moment when a mother leopard helped Inca find her way back to her family when she got lost. They looked into each other's eyes and had this recognition that they are both part of the same (feline) family. I appreciate the author for acknowledging that a mother is a mother, whether they're human or not and the other lessons as well, and doing it without being too obvious.
I also thought the author did a nice job of taking us on side adventures, like the tea plantation and the beach, but not spending too long on them and focused mainly on the case of the stolen sword. Of course, as the reader would know by looking at the title, this book is part of a series, but it comfortably stands alone as well.
I would recommend this book for the 8-11 age group, but it is appropriate for any age and especially those who love animals. I enjoyed it and really couldn't find any faults with it. I would usually not pick a children's book to read, but I was thinking when I started reading it that I would love to suggest this book to my younger neices, and gladly will. I'm enthusiastically giving this book a 4 out of 4.
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Serendipity Mystery: Diary of a Snoopy Cat
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