Dawn Undercover: Amazon.ca: Anna Dale: Books

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From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6–Dawn Buckle, 11, is so ordinary that even her parents frequently fail to notice her. This invisibility pays off when a top-secret spy organization called P.S.S.T. recruits her for an important rescue mission. She must learn the tools of the spy trade and then go undercover in a small English village to track down criminal mastermind Murdo Meek. Bumbling spies, numerous mishaps, and a jumble of acronyms–spy agencies called S.H.H., A.H.E.M., and C.O.O.E.E.–contribute to the story's light, humorous tone. The bad guys don't kill people; they just kidnap them, lock them up, exploit their phobias, or knock them off ladders. There is a large cast of colorful characters but, except for the protagonist, few are particularly well developed. The story also gets off to a slow start; the mission doesn't actually begin until almost halfway into the novel. Still, mystery lovers should enjoy following the clues and observing Dawn's development as she becomes more confident and self-assured. Plenty of challenging vocabulary will also make this a good choice for precocious readers who want a book without mature themes.–Miranda Doyle, San Francisco Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-7. Who better to serve as a spy than a girl that no one ever notices? Eleven-year-old Dawn Buckle is virtually invisible to those around her, but she does catch the attention of a member of British agency S. H. H. (Strictly Hush-Hush) and is selected to serve as a child spy for the P. S. S. T. division (Pursuit of Scheming Spies and Traitors). Dawn and the agency's secretary are deployed to the village of Cherry Bently to locate a missing spy and an evil criminal, Murdo Meek. Dawn trades in her drab dress, including her trademark mushroom-colored socks, for a new wardrobe and a new name, but sneaks along one personal belonging, her beloved stuffed donkey, Clop, whose bravery and sacrifice aids the detective process, making him an endearing inanimate hero. The pacing drags in places, and readers will have to reconcile the young stuffed-animal-carrying protagonist with the sophisticated vocabulary and complicated plot jumps. Dawn's growth in self-esteem and confidence is believable, and the secondary characters are unique. Young mystery fans will also enjoy playing with the codes she employs. Cindy Dobrez
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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