I So Don't Do Spooky

March 1, 2010
In this sequel to Summy's debut novel I So Don't Do Mysteries, Sherry, who has continued contact with her dead mother, returns as an eighth-grader preoccupied with her new boyfriend, her hair, and her dismal grades in computer class, which is taught by her stepmother, Paula, aka "The Ruler." As in the previous book, Sherry is helping her mother, a former cop now a ghost enrolled in an afterlife police academy, with real-world assignments. This time around, it involves finding a stalker who's harassing Paula. Between numerous classmates, rival school robotics teams, disgruntled parents, and the entire spirit realm, there are plenty of walk-on roles to provide fodder for Sherry's snarky commentary ("Who are these crazy, crazy, unbalanced nutzoids? I came here today totally believing the Donner robotics team wouldn't stalk The Ruler. Now? I'm not so sure"). Readers who like their mysteries light and frothy should find this to their taste, and those who missed the first installment will have no trouble starting here. Ages 10-up.

December 1, 2009
Gr 6-8-Sherry Holmes Baldwin, the 13-year-old heroine of Summy's "I So Don't Do Mysteries" (Delacorte, 2008) is back for a second reluctant round of detection. When her mothera ghostly coed at the Academy of Spiritsasks Sherry to help her find out who is stalking Sherry's stepmother, a task set upon her by her Academy guidance counselor, the teen agrees, even though her relationship with "The Ruler," who teaches at her middle school, is often strained. Guided by her spectral mother as well as her ghostly grandfather, Sherry goes undercover at a neighboring junior high school's robotics club meeting, certain that one of their members is behind the torment. After several meetings with Mom and Grandpa and the intervention of a teen psychic and a ghost-hunter, Sherry finally solves the mystery, though by the last pages of the novel the identity of her stepmother's stalker almost seems like a moot point. Not tightly written or clever enough to be considered screwball, and with not as much attitude as Meg Cabot's "Mediator" series (HarperCollins), this story doesn't satisfy as a mystery or as a supernatural thriller."Amy S. Pattee, Simmons College, Boston"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2009
Grades 6-9 Sherry Holmes Baldwin, a Phoenix, Arizona, teen, has a stepmom, Paula; a dad who travels frequently; a little brother, Sam; a best friend, Junie; and a gorgeous boyfriend, Josh. She also has a mother who is a ghost and a big mystery to solve. The Academy of Spirits, located in a Dairy Queen, has determined that Paula may be in danger. If Sherry can find out who, or what, has targeted her stepmom, and if her birth mom can win the Ghostlympics, the Academy of Spirits will grant mother and daughter five minutes of Real Time together, just like before Mom died! Its a tough, spooky task to determine who would want to harm Paula, and, as the title states, Sherry so doesnt do spooky. Summy has written a funny, surprising, and charming ghost story that incorporates authentic, likable young teens; strangely believable ghosts (including Sherrys grandfather, who has taken the form of a perky wren); and well-integrated paranormal elements. Balancing slapstick and poignant twists, this should find a wide readership among young teens.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)

October 20, 2008
About to be shipped off to San Diego while her widower dad goes on his honeymoon, seventh-grader Sherry (short for Sherlock) Holmes Baldwin prepares to put up a fight when she is contacted by her mother's ghost. Killed in the line of duty, her cop mother is flunking out of an afterlife law-enforcement academy, and she needs Sherry's help to crack a case at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. So what if Sherry, a self-proclaimed screwup, is nothing like Nancy Drew? (“Do I look like a strawberry-blond-haired teenage detective?” wisecracking Sherry demands.) Summy keeps the fizz in her effervescent premise for most of this debut novel, using a punchy first-person narration; story lines involving romances, movie stars, rhinos and egotistical chefs; and various eccentricities, including a late grandfather who assumes the form of a wren. Although the plot becomes too convoluted even for screwball comedy, Sherry remains entertaining, and readers will hope for a second caper. Ages 10–up.

January 1, 2010
Girlie-girl detective Sherry Holmes Baldwin (I So Don't Do Mysteries)--think Nancy Drew meets Elle Woods, for the middle school set--has a mega-crazy life: her mom is a ghost, her stepmom has a stalker, and an eighth grader is after her "uberwonderful" boyfriend. Throw in psychics and robotics clubs and...yep, the plot's over-the-top, but fans of mystery-flavored chick-lit-lite will zip through.

(Copyright 2010 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)