Blending popular format and genre-graphic novel and mystery-Goertz introduces Shirley and Jamila, who have joined forces for the summer as a matter of convenience. Jamila wants to play basketball at a court several blocks from her home, and her overprotective mother is reluctant to let her go until Shirley suggests the two girls can go together. And while Jamila is shooting baskets, she notices that Shirley is frequently meeting with kids who seem to be coming to her for some sort of help or service. It turns out Shirley is a detective, and when Oliver, another neighborhood kid, approaches Shirley about a stolen gecko, Jamila is pulled into the case, even though Shirley would prefer to work alone. What follows is a highly entertaining mystery that takes the two friends-if they can call themselves that-to the pool and around the neighborhood as they talk to witnesses and suspects. In the end, the entire ordeal leads to a new group of friends for a number of kids who had been feeling pretty lonely. There is plenty of humor in the story, and plenty of diversity in their neighborhood, as well: Shirley is white, Jamila is brown-skinned and Muslim, and Oliver is Black. There's also plenty of appeal for kids looking for a funny, satisfying, and heartwarming story. (Ages 8-12)

This middle-grade graphic novel for fans of Roller Girl and Smile introduces Jamila and Shirley, two unlikely friends who save each other's summers while solving their neighborhood's biggest mysteries.

Jamila Waheed is staring down a lonely summer in a new neighborhood--until she meets Shirley Bones. Sure, Shirley's a little strange, but both girls need a new plan for the summer, and they might as well become friends.

Then this kid Oliver shows up begging for Shirley's help. His pet gecko has disappeared, and he's sure it was stolen! That's when Jamila discovers Shirley's secret: She's the neighborhood's best kid detective, and she's on the case. When Jamila discovers she's got some detective skills of her own, a crime-solving partnership is born.

The mystery of the missing gecko turns Shirley and Jamila's summer upside down. And when their partnership hits a rough patch, they have to work together to solve the greatest mystery of all: What it means to be a friend.