Title: Death Cloud
Author: Andrew Lane
Publisher: Square Fish
Pages: 320
Ages: Young Adult (grades 6-8)
Publisher's Review: It is the summer of 1868, and Sherlock Holmes is fourteen. On break from boarding school, he is staying with eccentric strangers—his uncle and aunt—in their vast house in Hampshire. When two local people die from symptoms that resemble the plague, Holmes begins to investigate what really killed them, helped by his new tutor, an American named Amyus Crowe. So begins Sherlock’s true education in detection, as he discovers the dastardly crimes of a brilliantly sinister villain of exquisitely malign intent.
I read this book to review for the International Reading Association Teachers' Choice project. I really enjoyed it! I would recommend it for advanced readers in the fourth and fifth grades, and for readers in middle school. I thought the structure and beauty of language was fantastic. It kept me interested and on my toes. I think it could be used in solving science mysteries or in a unit on Sherlock Holmes.
This book is a great example from the mystery genre. It would be a great way to introduce the character of Sherlock Homes and solving mysteries. Since this author was interested in writing about the early years of Sherlock, something readers do not know about, teachers could have students pick a character, fictional or non-fictional, and write a story about his or her life that readers don't know about (most likely their childhood).
Any issues with appropriateness might be that the book has scary moments but I would not keep from having it in my library.
Keep learning,
Christine
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