Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence

Maisie Hitchins is desperate to be a detective. Her life in her grandmother’s boarding house affords her opportunities when she is not sweeping the stairs to be searching for mysteries to solve and looking out for her hero, the famous Victorian detective, Gilbert Carrington. With a witty nod to Sherlock Holmes, Maisie is a charming character who solves a simple mystery with the help of various friends and acquaintances, developing her detective skills along the way. A handful of characters such as her friend Alice, her grandmother’s lodgers, and George the butcher’s boy are warmly portrayed. Most significant of Maisie’s relationships is that with her newly found puppy, central to the plot and her all-important detective assistant. Whilst serious historians may find a depth of time and place lacking, for this age group, Holly Webb strikes the right note: it is clear this is not the modern day. From sweeping the stairs, butchers’ boys on bicycles, governesses and the fact that ‘it’s expensive to be ill’ the reader will pick up some details of life in a different time without it distracting them from the narrative flow. Black and white illustrations by Marion Lindsay on most pages reinforce the historical context and add humour and warmth throughout. Holly Webb is a prolific writer with several series, popular with girls aged 7-10. In Maisie Hitchins they will find an amiable, plucky character whose gentle detective adventures contain nothing too sinister or threatening for a young reader. Other titles available in this series are The Case of the Vanishing Emerald and The Case of the Phantom Cat (released August 2013).