The Missing Manatee

From Booklist
Gr. 5-8. While cruising in his small boat through the maze of Florida's coastal rivers, young Skeet Waters comes across a dead manatee. Close examination reveals that the manatee was shot through the head. However, when Skeet and a deputy sheriff return to the scene of the crime, they discover that the manatee has disappeared. Skeet is determined to solve the crime, but he takes a break in his efforts to go fly-fishing for tarpon with Dirty Dan, a legendary local guide. Eventually, Skeet discovers that Dirty Dan is responsible for the manatee's death and disappearance. With the help of his funny and free-spirited grandmother, Skeet also learns that administrating true justice is not always simple or easy. DeFelice delivers a fast-paced mystery with a strong sense of place. Her lengthy description of the subtleties of tarpon fishing will grab young lovers of outdoor adventures. These elements, along with strong characters and an effective first-person narration, create an exciting whole, sure to hook readers. Todd Morning
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
"DeFelice delivers a fast-paced mystery with a strong sense of place.  Strong characters and an effective first-person narration...create an exciting whole, sure to hook readers."  -- Booklist

Book Description
A tribute to Florida, fishing, and family

All Skeet Waters wants is to catch a big, beautiful tarpon on his fly rod - and to keep everything else in his life in Florida the way it's always been. But on his spring break from school, Skeet overhears his mother telling his father to move out permanently. Then, while riding in his boat to escape his parents' troubles, he discovers a manatee that's been shot in the head. Skeet puts aside his search for the manatee and its killer when Dirty Dan the Tarpon Man offers to take him out to catch his first tarpon on a fly. Because of Dan, Skeet begins to
unravel the mysteries surrounding the manatee's apparent murder and his parents' dissolving marriage.

Skeet discovers that life is a lot like tarpon fishing, in which you can't look just at the surface of the water - you have to look through it, at what lies beneath.


About the Author
Cynthia DeFelice has written many popular novels for young readers, including The Ghost of Cutler Creek and Under the Same Sky. She lives in upstate New York.



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Skeet discovers that life is a lot like tarpon fishing, in which you can't look just at the surface of the water - you have to look through it, at what lies beneath.


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