The Search for Baby Ruby - Hardcover

Susan Shreve is the author of twelve novels, more than twenty books for children, and the co-editor of three anthologies. She teaches at George Mason University, where she is a founder of the MFA Creative Writing program. Along with her books, Shreve also wrote short essay documentaries for the Jim Lehrer News Hour, and had one of her books adapted into an NBC series.
Susan lives in Washington DC with her husband.

Gr 4–6—Jess O'Fines is not the type of girl to cause any trouble. In fact, she's practically an expert on not making problems. The whole family, including both her divorced parents, have traveled to California to attend her sister Whee's wedding. Jess is looking forward to wearing her violet dress and spending the evening as her father's date. Her plans are crushed when her older brother neglects to get a babysitter for his daughter, Ruby. Jess is immediately saddled with the job. Things take a turn for the worse when Jess makes the mistake of going to the bathroom to try on her sister's dress and makeup with the door closed. When she comes out baby Ruby is gone. Sure that everyone will be utterly disappointed with her lack of responsibility, she tell no one but her other sister, Teddy. Jess must piece together the tiny clues to find Ruby: a man heading toward the room from the elevator and a strange woman hiding in the linen closet. As Jess leaves the hotel to search, she is kidnapped by the very people she seeks. Kids may be confused by the introduction of all of the characters at the start of the book and the mystery is somewhat slow to unfold. How did the culprits get into the room to take the baby and what were they doing in the hotel anyway? Why was Jess kidnapped? Some of the clues just don't seem to add up. Readers discover Jess's volatile relationship to the members of her family through the course of the story and that gives her feelings some context, but the actual kidnapping seems forced VERDICT A less-than-satisfying mystery.—Patricia Feriano, Montgomery County Public Schools, MD