Book giveaway: Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb

[RachelMumsnet]

We have fifty copies of Maisie Hitchins: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence to giveaway this week. It's the first title in a brand new series by best selling 'Animal stories' author Holly Webb. In this adventure, Detective Maisie is on her first mission in victorian London which involves an abandoned puppy and stolen sausages. If you think you may know someone who will enjoy reading Maisie Hitchins, apply for one of fifty free copies.

Here's my son's review. He is aged 8 and really enjoyed the book.
"A little girl called Maisie Hitchins finds a dog in a sack that's tried to be drowned. She keeps it and looks after it. She tries to find out who did it in a mystery by being like a detective. The dog becomes her helper when she acts like a detective to solve things. I liked it."

Recieved my copy Thankyou :) Will let you know how we get on

Lovely little book thank you,enjoyed it myself :-)

DD wanted to leave her review: "I loved this book. I learnt a lot about the olden days. I loved the fact she was a detective.Thanks it was brilliant!I am 6"

Right DD has just finished Mariella Mystery Cupcake Mystery so this is next on our list. Hoping she will start it this evening!

My daughter (8) loved this book. She's read quite a few Holly Webb books before and always enjoyed them, so she was really looking forward to receiving The Case of the Stolen Sixpence. Once she started she couldn't put it down and finished it quite quickly. She said the book was 'very, very good' and she loved all of Maisie Hitchins' disguises. Looking through the book myself, I can see why it appealed to my daughter so much. There are lovely illustrations and the pages are designed to look 'old'. As soon as she finished the book my daughter asked if we could see if there were any more books in the series so she could read them too, so she definitely enjoyed it.

DD (7) loved this one and so did I. I don't think she or we have knowingly read any Holly Webb books previously, but we very much enjoyed Maisie Hitchins. DD said she liked it because it contained a puzzle as well as a story! She has already asked if we can read the others in the series which is a good sign.

I think what we both enjoyed about it is that it tapped into a bit of history (how life was different 100 years or so ago), there was an element of pet-care which is always appealing to children of the 5-9 age-range, an element of dressing up and 'let's pretend' which very much taps into their psyche at this stage in their play, a lesson in morality and many examples of friendship extended in a positive way across age-groups and class.

It was an easy but pacey read and DD liked that they included 'pictures' - she still hates densely texted paperbacks with no illustrations.

Thank you for the copy and we will certainly be recommending them to friends with similar aged children.

Just got back from holiday and I was really impressed by Holly Webb's The Case of the Stolen Sixpence.I am a retired teacher and liked the fact that this book would encourage young girls to read. It certainly is a change from the usual fairies and pets. I thought Maisie was a positive role model and the book had old fashioned values! I am going to give this to my friend's nine year old daughter to read!

Still reading a chapter a night to dd. She's 4 nearly 5 and we've been reading Roald Dahl and Enid Blyton for a while so she's used to chapter books. So far she likes the amount of pictures but the story isn't holding her attention as much as Dahl. There are some unfamiliar concepts like the boarding house, which I've been explaining as we go which provides opportunity to talk about the book. I'll post again once we've finished.

Marking my place as my DS (5) and I are up to Chapter 3!! Good so far!

We started this book last night, my DD (6) enjoyed the first 2 chapters, I will return when we have got further through.

Just finished reading this to DS (5) and I thoroughly enjoyed it although he struggled a bit with sitting still quiet and long enough to fully appreciate it (typical 5 yr old boy!)

I liked the story and way it has been written. The historical aspect of it being set in a different era was a good learning tool for DS as I had to explain a few things to him.

DS liked the illustrations and the way the pages had been 'aged'.

The chapters were quite long to hold the attention of a 5 year old but overall it was an enjoyable read and I'd certainly like to read more in the series - maybe when DS is a bit older and will concentrate for longer periods!!
Thank you for letting us review the book!

First of all, thank you so much for the copy of the book.
I read it first and really enjoyed it, the story plot, loveable characters and the illustrations all contribute to a great experience.
I also read it to my son and daughter. They really liked discussing it and speculationg about the outcome. Now they are being little detectives themselves, looking everywhere for "clues".
I think it's great for kids 5 to 10 but not limited of course (I am quite a bit older and loved it). Will definitely be buying other books from this series.

My DD loved this book and we are buying it for her cousin's birthday as well as the next books in the series being on my DD's list for future reads.

I liked that there was a girl as the main character and it wasn't all about dancing and fairies!

My only criticism would be that it was overly descriptive in places, making it a bit clunky to read.

Thanks again for giving us the opportunity to read this book - we enjoyed it.

Marking place (again) read first couple of chapters with dd(7) - will report back soon.

Well, we've finished it, and it has taken us some time to do so. Dd wasn't keen on this book. She found it hard going and was reluctant to finish it. I think as a book for a child who can read it on their own it has a good pace and easy language. Some of the concepts and references would go over the head of most children. There is frequent reference to Gilbert Carrington for example, who is a Sherlock Holmes reference. The historical aspect proved confusing for dd who needed several things explaining to her. The book has a moralistic tone which appeals to a child's sense of justice. Overall, I probably enjoyed it more than DD. She is however at the lower end of the age range this is aimed at.

My DS(9) just finished this. It took him a while to finish it so I feared he was not enjoying it. However he told me this morning that it was a 5 star book and he loved it. He is generally behind his reading age so it is probably suitable for younger children as well

DD is six and had a go at reading it herself but found too many unfamiliar words/concepts. She loved the front cover and the illustrations though. Its hard going though and I just dont think shes enjoying it. Can see an older child loving it .