The Pinchers and the Diamond Heist

This illustrated chapter book for early readers is a fun and original twist on the crime caper genre.

The Pinchers are Nic and Rob, their children Theo and Ellen (CriminEllen!), Sherlock the dog and Grandma Stola. They are a villainous family of career criminals whose complete lack of morality is a source of great distress for the young son, Theo.

Unlike the rest of his family, Theo values honesty and the rule of law, even to the extent that he’s willing to grass up his newspaper-stealing dad to the police officer who lives next door. Such virtuous action is repugnant to Nic and Rob, who are forced to keep their criminal intentions secret when they head off in the middle of the night to visit the ‘Golden Diamond’ exhibit.

Theo is left baby-sitting his little sister – which is an extremely challenging task. Ellen is very unwilling to do as she is told or stay in one place, despite the offer of ice cream for dinner. Chasing the whims of his sister, Theo finds himself caught up in an adventure that involves a short stay in jail, dynamite, a sleeping policeman and a love-struck old lady.

It is a little hard to know who to root for in this story. All of the characters are extremely likeable. Whether they are cheeky, conniving criminals, or witless buffoons in positions of authority, everyone has redeemable features and everyone is funny! For a story all about robbery, it is surprisingly hard to  identify who the villains are! As a result, readers will share Theo’s conflicting emotions. Should he be honest and speak to the Police… even if it gets his family into trouble?

The book has a thoroughly engaging voice. The present tense is used to convey just how Theo is feeling, with the effect that the reader feels like they are being soothed by a caring parent: ‘Theo has a sore stomach again. He had upset Paul Eessman.’ Also effective is the way that characters and settings are described with adorable, youthful innocence. The jail, for example, is a place where stripey clothed grown-ups are a bit naughty, as summarised by its sign on the wall: ‘Jail. Have you broken the law? Welcome! Otherwise, go away!’

With gorgeous, goofy illustrations on every page, The Pinchers is a story that is joyfully strange and quirky. It would be great fun to read with a parent or to indulge in independently. Readers will be pleased to see that other episodes of The Pinchers are on their way from Sweden soon!