Susan Stan (Children's Literature)
Three forms of text converge to present the information contained in this "Unsolved Mystery from History," which deals with two young girls who were residents of an orphanage in Midnapore, India. Were they feral children, as was suggested by Reverend Singh, the orphanage director, or simply neglected before coming there? Were they abandoned in the forest, dropped off at the orphanage gate, or discovered in a wolf den? Was Singh sincere in his efforts to help the girls or was he exploiting them to raise funds for the orphanage? The running narrative provides the main thread of the story, while the notebook-style inserts contain background material, including excerpts from Rev. Singh's journal, and Post-It-style boxes add definitions of hard or unfamiliar words in the narrative. A fourth source of information is found in the illustrations, which primarily follow the narrative thread. In the final three pages, the authors outline four possible theories as to what really happened and urge readers to examine the clues for themselves. Such an approach is valuable for young people in demonstrating that much of history is interpretation rather than proven fact, and that historians must often be detectives of the past. 2001, Simon & Schuster, $16.00. Ages 8 to 12.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, July 1, 2001 (Vol. 69, No. 13))
In the early 1920s, newspapers throughout the world reported on two orphaned girls in a village in India who, it was alleged, had been raised by wolves. The journal of the missionary who claimed to have found them provided the "eyewitness" account, although it was written after the fact. How likely is his story? Historians have several clues and theories, but no answers. In the same format as "Mary Celeste: An Unsolved Mystery from History "(not reviewed), Yolen and Stemple present this "unsolved mystery" as the research of a detective's daughter going through her father's files. On each spread, the main narrative (in a framed buff-colored box) is accompanied by glossary terms (on "post-it" sized boxes) and notes from Singh's journal or historical notes (on lined notebook paper). Each of these items "floats" over Roth's double-page, realistic illustrations-in muted watercolor-and-pencil tones-of a scene from the narrative. The "sleuthing" effect works generally well, although it's occasionally sloppy: one "note" explains something from a previous page; a glossary term appears visually before its place in the narrative; some glossary terms seem unnecessary (orphanage, gossip, villagers), or their explanations curious ("tribe: A group of people who often wander from one bit of wasteland to another"). The authors close the narrative with a summary of existing theories about "what really happened," posing questions about the clues. The intent is to help readers decide for themselves, although the questions posed are biased towards particular explanations. But it is accessible and fascinating, and fans of unsolved mysteries will enjoy turning back and forth through the pages of this one. (bibliography) 2001, Simon & Schuster, $16.00. Category: Fiction. Ages 8 to 13. © 2001 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Dawn Cobb (The Lorgnette - Heart of Texas Reviews (Vol. 14, No. 1))
The format in which Jane Yolen and her daughter, Heidi, chose to reveal their information for this true story is most enjoyable. One set of clues is presented on lined, stenographic paper while the other set of clues is featured in yellow, unlined boxes. Words that might be unfamiliar are in smaller, colored books. After all the clues are presented, the authors summarize all the different stories to allow the reader to come to their own conclusions. This book would be especially appealing to the independent reader in grades three to six. Nonfiction. Grades 3 and up. 2001, Simon & Schuster, Unpaged, $16.00. Ages 8 up.