The Case of the Plagued Play

by David Lewman

Overview

The school play is in danger of closing before it even opens if Club CSI: can’t figure out who’s ruining rehearsals!

Someone is trying to sabotage the school play, and it’s up to Hannah, Ben, and Corey to make sure the show goes on. Club CSI: learns that the play was written by an eighth grader at Woodlands Junior High… Is the culprit a jealous classmate? Or could a disgruntled actor be to blame? As more props go missing and the set is vandalized, Club CSI: must use all of the investigation and forensic science techniques in their arsenal to crack the case. Because if they don’t, the play’s final curtain call might happen before opening night!

© 2013 CBS&Ent. AB Funding LLC. All Rights Reserved. CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION in USA is a TM of CBS and outside USA TM of Ent. AB Funding LLC.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781442472624
Publisher:	Simon Spotlight
Publication date:	05/14/2013
Series:	Club CSI , #6
Sold by:	SIMON & SCHUSTER
Format:	eBook
Pages:	160
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

David Lewman has written more than sixty-five books starring SpongeBob SquarePants, Jimmy Neutron, the Fairly OddParents, G.I. Joe, the Wild Thornberrys, and other popular characters. He has also written scripts for many acclaimed television shows. David lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Donna, and their dog, Pirkle.

Read an Excerpt

The Case of the Plagued Play

Mrs. Gordon walked between the desks of her students, passing back their graded assignments. When she got to Theo’s desk, she paused.

She’d been teaching eighth-grade English at Woodlands Junior High School for sixteen years, and Theo’s assignment was one of the finest pieces of student writing she’d ever seen. It had been a pleasure to read.

“Great job, Theo,” she said, handing him the thick bundle of stapled pages. “You must have worked really hard on this.”

“Thanks,” Theo murmured. He looked at the grade Mrs. Gordon had written on the front page: A+!

Theo sat staring at the paper, looking slightly stunned.

Mark, the student sitting next to Theo, sneaked a glance at Theo’s grade. When he saw the A+, he frowned. Mark had been really proud of the A he’d gotten—until he saw Theo’s A+. Now he just felt envious.

He was about to feel even more envious.

After she’d returned the last graded paper, Mrs. Gordon made her way back to her desk at the front of the class. “I was really pleased with how each of you handled this long-term assignment,” she said. “It’s not easy writing a full-length play, but you did quite well. Very impressive.”

The students smiled, proud of themselves. Mrs. Gordon was notorious for being a tough grader, so it was unusual for her to talk so positively about their homework.

“In fact,” she continued, “you’ve done so well that Miss Farrell and I have a surprise for you.” Miss Farrell was the other eighth-grade English teacher at their Nevada junior high school. She’d assigned her class to write plays too.

Mrs. Gordon smiled. “One of your plays is going to receive a full-scale production right here at Woodlands Junior High. It’ll be this year’s school play!”

The students looked excited. They’d never heard of a play written by a student being chosen as the school play.

Each student secretly wondered and hoped, Did they pick my play?

A girl named Chelsea raised her hand. “Yes, Chelsea?” Mrs. Gordon asked, calling on her.

“Have you and Miss Farrell already picked which play is going to be put on?” Chelsea asked, bouncing her knee and tapping her desk with a pencil.

Mrs. Gordon nodded. “Yes, we have,” she said. “We were in complete agreement.”

She paused, keeping her students in suspense. She wished the whole class would pay such close attention every day.

“Whose is it?” Chelsea asked, unable to bear the tension any longer.

“Theo’s,” Mrs. Gordon announced. “Woodlands Junior High will be putting on Theo’s play, Nobody’s Home.”

Every student’s head turned toward Theo. He looked down at his script, embarrassed by all the attention.

“Way to go, Theo!” said a friendly kid named Sam. “Awesome!” He started applauding, and the others joined in. Except for Mark.

Mrs. Gordon held up her hands to stop their applause and regain their attention. “I’ll be directing the play myself,” she said. “Auditions will be next week, and I encourage all of you to try out. You don’t need to have acted before. I think Theo’s play is going to be a lot of fun!”

The kids in the class whispered and chattered. Everyone was excited by Mrs. Gordon’s surprising announcement.

Except for Theo and Mark. They didn’t look excited at all.

Editorial Reviews

Seventh-graders Ben, Corey, and Hannah have a reputation for solving mysteries at their school. Known as Club CSI, they are taking a forensic science class, where they have access to equipment and tests to help them solve crimes. In this installment of the "Club CSI" series, an eighth-grader named Kelly seeks their help, as the school play, a mystery, is apparently being sabotaged. Kelly is in the cast, and this play is particularly special because an eighth-grader in their school wrote it. Props are disappearing, and the club members have a hard time coming up with valid suspects. But then the saboteur paints the answer to the mystery on one of the sets, and it becomes clear that only a member of the cast or crew would know this. With clues gathered from the crime scene, the sleuths are able to use the paper chromatography skills learned in forensic science to pinpoint the culprit, although determining a motive takes even more digging. But much like the TV series, their detective skills lead them to the answer. This is the sixth story in the series, but it stands completely alone. Readers who like science will enjoy the thorough explanations of forensic scientific principles taught in the class, and fans of mysteries and/or the TV series will enjoy trying to solve the crime along with these smart middle-schoolers, whose personalities and humor are very appealing. Large print and appropriate spacing make this series ideal for reluctant readers. Reviewer: Magi Evans

Children's Literature - Magi Evans