Review - Major and Mynah by Karen Owen

 Major and Mynah by Karen Owen

*final cover image will be revealed in January

Join SPUD, the Super Perceptive Undercover Detectives, on their first fast-paced detective adventure.

Getting your first hearing aids can be nerve-wracking; especially when you have to wear them to school. When Callie realises her new hearing aids - 'the Slugs' - give her the unique ability to communicate with Bo the Mynah bird, some of her worries are lifted. In fact, having a pair of eyes in the sky might come in handy...

The duo team up with Callie's best friend, Grace, as they set out to catch a local thief who has been causing trouble all over town.

Major and Mynah is a fantastic new book. Callie is a very funny and sweet young heroine, and her detective agency, SPUD, she runs with her friend Grace is very endearing.

Two things really stand out in this short novel. The first is the writing style. Everything is told from Callie's perspective, and it has almost a stream-of-consciousness style to it, as she goes off on tangents or gets distracted. I really loved how well it worked, it wasn't too forced, but it really felt like you were listening to a young, excitable narrator.

The second is the disabled rep. Callie has hearing difficulties, and a big section of the story revolves around her getting hearing aids, which she really doesn't want. I thought this whole element was handled very well, from her refusal to accept that she has a problem (it's just that everyone mumbles), to the overwhelming noise when she first puts them in, to the attitudes of her classmates at school. It's something I don't remember seeing in a middle-grade book before, and I'm sure there'll be children out there who will see themselves in Callie and this might help them to accept the help they need. Equally, there will hopefully be children who recognise friends, family members or classmates in what Callie is going through, and this will hopefully teach empathy and understanding. 

It's also an exciting adventure/mystery too. A fast paced, exciting hunt for a bicycle thief around town, with Bo the Mynah bird proving to be an excellent sidekick. Or at least, an interesting sidekick, there are some very entertaining ups and downs with Bo!

There are also some great illustrations by Louise Forshaw. The copy I was given was only partially illustrated, but they're looking great!

This would be a great detective story for reluctant readers or younger middle-grade readers.

I'm giving Major and Mynah five moons

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Major and Mynah is published on 5 May 2022 by Firefly Press. I was given an ebook review copy through Netgalley in return for an honest review.