Review: The Lemonade Crime by Jacqueline Davies

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The Lemonade Crime. by Jacqueline Davies. March 21, 2011. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 160 pages. ISBN: 9780547279671

In this sequel to The Lemonade War, Jessie and Evan have begun school in the same class for the first time. Though they aren’t fighting anymore, they do still have one unresolved issue leftover from their end-of-summer war - they still haven’t gotten back their stolen money. Both Jessie and Evan are sure of who took it, but Jessie is the one who is truly determined to seek justice. She studies up on criminal law and turns the playground into a courtroom, complete with judge, lawyers, and jury. She assumes that her classmates will all be on the side of right - that is, her side - but finds that anything can happen in a court of law.

I liked this continuation of the story begun in The Lemonade War, but I don’t think it was quite as strong. What made the first book so enjoyable was the tension between the siblings, and because there is a third-party villain this time, some of that tension was necessarily missing from this book. What did work nicely was the relationship between Jessie and her older classmates and her obvious desire to win their affections even as she gets far too into the courtroom aspect. In keeping with the previous book’s format, The Lemonade Crime defines legal words at the opening of each chapter, and whereas math lessons abound in the first book, a lesson in criminal justice is the central focus this time. I also think the author handled Evan’s reaction to the alleged thief and his possible motives in a very believable way. The emotional conclusion of the book shows some especially good character development for Evan as he ultimately confronts the thief.

Kids who read the first book won’t want to miss this second volume, or the recently released third one, The Bell Bandit. Readers should start with the first book or the gravity of Jessie and Evan’s loss when the money is stolen might not be fully realized, but I think it is possible to get the gist of things and keep with this story without that first book. I would probably be most likely to give this book to kids in grades 3 and 4, and I think it would be a great one for kids who are interested in mysteries, or who express interest in becoming lawyers.

I borrowed The Lemonade Crime from my local public library. 

For more about this book, visit Goodreads and Worldcat.