Cam Jansen and her best friend Eric Shelton get mixed up in another mystery in this nineteenth entry in David A. Adler's series of beginning chapter-books devoted to their crime-solving adventures. Taking a sightseeing boat ride with Eric's mother and her friend, Cam and Eric help a wealthy lady when her poodle goes missing, and help to catch a thief, intent on stealing the poodle's jewel-encrusted collar...

Although I have a nostalgic fondness for the Cam Jansen books, as I read a number of the earlier titles when I was a girl myself, I have found, over the course of my project to read the entire series, that the stories get weaker as the series progresses. Cam Jansen and the Barking Treasure Mystery felt a bit like a rehash of the previous installment, Cam Jansen and the Catnapping Mystery, which also dealt with a stolen pet, and I had difficulty working up much interest in the resolution of the 'mystery.' I also found Mrs. Shelton's friend, meant to be comic relief I suspect, annoying. Young fans of Cam Jansen will most likely still enjoy this one, but I found it the low point of the series, thus far. ( )

00005280

GR: N
GL: 3.5
DRA: 30
Lexile: 450L