The Lemonade Crime

Gr 4—6—Events in The Lemonade War (Houghton Harcourt, 2007) are over, and fourth grade has just started. Jessie and Evan are in the same class, and neither sibling is quite comfortable with this situation. Jessie is the youngest kid in the class, thanks to skipping third grade. She wisely gives her brother plenty of space. When she arrives on the playground each morning, she hangs on the outskirts and observes. But her strong sense of fairness and dislike for Scott Spencer cause her to speak up when he cuts in line one morning. Then he begins bragging about the new video-game system he just got, thanks to his mom's connections. Jessie wonders where he got the money for it. And once she shares her suspicions with Evan, a new war is on. The last one involved which of them could make the most money during the last week before school. This time, it's a legal war. Evan is convinced that Scott stole his lemonade-stand proceeds but he can't prove it. Now that there's circumstantial evidence pointing at Scott, Jessie and Evan join forces to make the case. Each chapter heading defines a tenet of our legal system and frames the action. Short chapters, realistic dialogue and social dynamics, humor, and suspense will keep even reluctant readers turning pages to the satisfying conclusion. The Lemonade Crime is certainly a first purchase for collections that have The Lemonade War. But it can stand alone and would make a lovely read-aloud, especially in tween classrooms, where it's all about justice and fairness.—Brenda Kahn, Tenakill Middle School, Closter, NJ

When the boy who stole $200 from Jessie and Evan in The Lemonade War brags about his newly purchased Xbox, Jessie demands a trial, with her brother as plaintiff and herself as his lawyer. Davies again does a good job showing what motivates each character, depicting them with some shades of gray as they don't always live up to their own standards.