the mystery of the clockwork sparrow

"Stepping onto the shop floor was like stepping inside a chocolate box. Sophie's feet sank into the thick, soft carpet and she sucked in a deep breath of the rich, perfumed air. She had been falling in love with the store since the very first moment she saw it on the day of her interview, when it had still been noisy with the sounds of sawing and hammering, and had smelled of sawdust and paint. Even then, it had seemed more like a place from a fairy story than any dull, ordinary shop." ​

​Department stores today are old hat, but in the early 1900s, they were new and mysterious and oh-so-elegant. And that's the world you step into when you settle into the opening pages of The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow, by Katherine Woodfine.

Set in London in 1909, this mystery brings to life a brand new department store, Sinclair's, as seen through the eyes of its young workers. It doesn't take long before you are just as enchanted with this place as Sophie is!

I was quickly sucked into Sophie's world. Her story is a beautiful blend of elegant imagery - you can practically smell and touch everything in Sophie does - and labyrinthian mystery. Sinclair's is the backdrop for a mystery that is, as times, dark: theft, murder, a crime lord, kidnapping, threats... in short, everything that makes up a satisfying nail-biter. But the overall book doesn't feel dark because of the balance of these plot elements with absolutely enthralling language. And this is an English teacher talking. 

Clockwork Sparrow is primarily told from the perspective of Sophie, a young woman who is working in the millinery department (that's hats, if you were born after 1950 ;) of Sinclair's. But the narration jumps between Sophie and a few other key characters: Billy, a young porter who is prone to slipping up; Lil, an adored model of Sinclair's fashion; and Joe, a young man who has found himself in more trouble than he would like to admit. 

Sometimes, switching narrators within a story can feel confusing or scattered. It worked for me in this novel, though, because each character has its own voice, and Sophie continues to be a uniting thread throughout the novel. Indeed, I found the additional voices added depth and intrigue to the mystery.

All in all, this novel was great fun - both from the layered mystery to the absolutely enchanting atmosphere of the store. Sinclair's really is a character in this story, and it plays its part well. I won't give spoilers away here, but if you would like details on the story arc before buying the book, send me a message! I understand the desire to know what's coming before handing a novel to a kid. But honestly, just read the book along with your kids! You won't be disappointed.

It's that book that transports you to another time and place... and keeps you there long after you've finished reading.

Book benefits:

• With a 940 Lexile score and 314 pages, this is a good read for advanced middle school students and a range of high school students - and adults!
• The mystery has layers that are difficult to untangle on your own
• The characters are likeable easy to relate to (and root for!), even though the setting is historical
• Narration is given from multiple perspectives, so different types of readers will find someone to relate to
• Have I mentioned how great the writing is? You don't have to work at it to see the action
• The mystery is solved in this book, but there's another in the series with the same characters

Buy The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow here! ($6.99, paperback)
Check out The Mystery of the Jeweled Moth for more adventures from Sophie and Lil

Click on the pictures to get a preview of the writing: