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    The Children's Book Review

    Spy-tacular Stories Featuring Spies, Detectives, and Mysteries

    Guest PostsBy Guest Posts5 Mins Read Ages 4-8 Ages 9-12 Best Kids Stories Book Lists Mysteries Reluctant Readers Teens: Young Adults
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    Laura Gehl | The Children’s Book Review

    When I was in elementary school, I loved Harriet the Spy, Encyclopedia Brown, Cam Jansen, and the Bobbsey Twins. In middle school, I moved on to Agatha Christie. As an adult, I still love books featuring sneaky spies, clever detectives, and intriguing mysteries. Here are a few great books to jumpstart a lifelong love of this genre.
     

    Picture Books

    Buy the BookSpy Guy: The Not-So-Secret Agent

    Written by Jessica Young

    Illustrated by Charles Santoso

    Kids will love this story featuring a sweet father/son relationship and a main character who needs a lot of persistence to become a good spy.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 4-7 | Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers | 2015 | ISBN-13: 978-0544208599

    Buy the Book7 Ate 9: The Untold Story

    Written by Tara Lazar

    Illustrated by Ross McDonald

    Did 7 really eat 9? Private I must solve the case! The clever wordplay in this book will make it a hit even with older elementary school kids.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 5-7 | Publisher: Disney-Hyperion | 2015 | ISBN-13: 978-1484717790
     

    Early Readers

    Buy the BookNate the Great series

    Written by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

    Illustrated by Marc Simont

    Nate the Great is a kid detective who solves mysteries for friends in his neighborhood. Even though Sharmat wrote this book the year I was born, my own daughter still loved it. This first title and others in the series have humor, logic, and simple sentence structure for beginning readers.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 6-9 | Publisher: Yearling | 1977 (Reprint) | ISBN-13: 978-0440461265
     

    Chapter Books

    Buy the BooksEncyclopedia Brown series

    Written by Donald J. Sobol

    The Encyclopedia Brown books star a 10-year-old detective. Unlike many mystery stories, the reader actually has enough information to solve each case. This is another series that has stood the test of time and was a hit with my own children.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 8-12 | Publisher: Puffin Books | 2007 (Reprint) | ISBN-13: 978-0142409855

    Buy the BookThe Case of the Missing Carrot Cake

    Written by Robin Newman

    Illustrated by Deborah Zemke

    What mystery can kids relate to better than a missing cake??? Wilcox and Griswold are mouse detectives who lead readers on a humorous chase to find the culprit.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 5-11 | Publisher: Creston Books | 2015 | ISBN-13: 978-1939547170
     

    Middle Grade Books

    Buy the BookGenius Files series

    Written by Dan Gutman

    Last summer, my son declared he had already read ALL the good books. Then he found this series and absolutely devoured it. Twelve-year-old genius twins Coke and Pepsi get pulled into a crazy world of evil guys in bowler hats and Frisbee grenades. Plenty of (violent) excitement and high-tech gadgets (Juniper Kai would approve), with strange-but-true tourist destinations thrown in.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon |

    Ages 8-12 | Publisher: HarperCollins | 2011 (Reprint) | ISBN-13: 978-0545390224

    Buy the BooksSpy School series

    Written by Stuart Gibbs

    Ben is thrilled when he is recruited, in middle school, to the C.I.A.’s Academy of Espionage. But things don’t go quite as smoothly as planned! This series has humor, action, and adventure (and also a romantic element).

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon | Indiebound

    Ages 8-12 | Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers | 2018 | ISBN-13: 978-1534442887
     

    For Older Readers

    Buy the BooksMurder on the Orient Express

    Written by Agatha Christie

    Once kids graduate from Stuart Gibbs and Dan Gutman, I think they are ready for the queen of mysteries herself. In addition to Murder on the Orient Express, with its fabulous twist ending, try The Murder of Roger Ackroydfor another mystery that will blow any middle schooler’s mind.

    Order a Copy Now: Amazon |

    Ages 15+ | Publisher: HarperCollins | 2015 (Reprint) | ISBN-13: 978-0008158613

    —

    About Laura Gehl

    Author Headshot of Laura Gehl
    Laura Gehl

    Laura Gehl is the author of many popular picture books, including One Big Pair of Underwear, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld; the Peep and Egg series, illustrated by Joyce Wan; and My Pillow Keeps Moving, illustrated by Christopher Weyant. She lives in Chevy Chase, Maryland, with one husband, four children, and seventeen fake mustaches.

    Visit Laura online at www.lauragehl.com and Twitter: @AuthorLauraGehl.

    Buy the BookJuniper Kai: Super Spy

    Written by Laura Gehl

    Illustrated by Alexandria Neonakis

    Publisher’s Synopsis: Juniper Kai was born to be a spy. And while spies sometimes work alone, Juniper has always been able to count on her mom and dad to fill in as spy partners. Until now. Suddenly, Juniper’s parents are too busy and too tired to play with her. And when they start whispering behind Juniper’s back and making secret plans, she knows something really big is going on. So Juniper sets out on a new mission: to find out exactly what her parents are up to. And the answer might be absolutely spy-tacular!

    book Juniper Kai Super Spy

    Ages 4-8 | Publisher: Two Lions | September 3, 2019 | ISBN-13: 978-1542043328

    Buy the Book
    Buy on Amazon
    Text, logo
    Fun Stuff

    Check out the free downloadable curriculum guide at http://www.lauragehl.com/curriculum-guides.

    What to Read Next:

    1. Best New Kids Books | February 2016
    2. Best New Kids Books | July 2016
    3. Best New Kids Stories | October 2015
    4. Best New Kids Stories | April 2016

    *Disclosure: Please note that this post may contain affiliate links that share some commission. Rest assured that these will not affect the cost of any products and services promoted here. Our team always provides their authentic opinion in all content published on this site.

    Agatha Christie Charles Santoso Creston Books Dan Gutman Detective Books Disney-Hyperion Donald J. Sobol HarperCollins HMH Books for Young Readers Jessica Young Laura Gehl Marc Simont Marjorie Weinman Sharmat Mysteries Mystery Puffin Books Ross McDonald Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Spy Books Stuart Gibbs Tara Lazar Two Lions Yearling
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    Guest Posts
    • Website

    The Children’s Book Review, named one of the ALSC (Association for Library Service to Children) Great Web Sites for Kids, is a resource devoted to children’s literacy. We publish reviews and book lists of the best books for kids of all ages. We also produce author and illustrator interviews and share literacy based articles that help parents, grandparents, teachers and librarians to grow readers. This article was written and provided by a guest author.

    3 Comments

    1. Carol Luciano on September 11, 2019 2:05 am

      Thanks for the age appropriate list of books.

      Reply
      • Bianca Schulze on October 7, 2019 8:09 am

        You’re very welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed the book list.

        Reply
    2. Bianca Schulze on October 7, 2019 8:11 am

      *Drum Roll*

      Congratulations to the three winners of this giveaway!

      Jenn F. (PA)
      Bing Y. (CA)
      Robert R. (FL)

      Copies of Juniper Kai: Super Spy will be on the way very soon. Enjoy!

      Reply
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