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Cam Jansen Mysteries #8
Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Monster Movie
The Cam Jansen books are perfect for young readers who are making the transition to chapter books, and Cam is a spunky young heroine whom readers have loved for over two decades. Now the first ten books in the series have updated covers that bring new life to these perennial best-sellers. Old fans and new readers will love Cam's cool, modern look!
70 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 14, 1984
24 people are currently reading
413 people want to read
About the author
David A. Adler
407 books206 followersDavid Abraham Adler is an American children's author. He was born in New York City, New York in 1947. He graduated from Queens College in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in economics and education. For the next nine years, he worked as a mathematics teacher for the New York City Board of Education, while taking classes towards a master's degree in marketing, a degree he was awarded by New York University in 1971. In that same year, a question from his then-three-year-old nephew inspired Adler to write his first story, A Little at a Time, subsequently published by Random House in 1976. Adler's next project, a series of math books, drew on his experience as a math teacher. In 1977, he created his most famous character, Cam Jansen, originally featured in Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds, which was published that year.
Adler married psychologist Renee Hamada in 1973, and their first child, Michael, was born in 1977. By that time Adler had taken a break from teaching and, while his wife continued her work, he stayed home, took care of Michael, and began a full-time writing career.
Adler's son, Michael S. Adler, is now the co-author of several books with his father, including A Picture Book of Sam Adams, A Picture Book of John Hancock, and A Picture Book of James and Dolly Madison. Another son, Edward, was the inspiration for Adler's Andy Russell series, with the events described in the series loosely based on adventures the Adler family had with Edward's enthusiasm and his pets.
As of November 2008, Adler has three sons and two grandsons. He lives in Woodmere, New York.
(source: Wikipedia)
Adler married psychologist Renee Hamada in 1973, and their first child, Michael, was born in 1977. By that time Adler had taken a break from teaching and, while his wife continued her work, he stayed home, took care of Michael, and began a full-time writing career.
Adler's son, Michael S. Adler, is now the co-author of several books with his father, including A Picture Book of Sam Adams, A Picture Book of John Hancock, and A Picture Book of James and Dolly Madison. Another son, Edward, was the inspiration for Adler's Andy Russell series, with the events described in the series loosely based on adventures the Adler family had with Edward's enthusiasm and his pets.
As of November 2008, Adler has three sons and two grandsons. He lives in Woodmere, New York.
(source: Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
September 14, 2020
Cam Jansen, her parents, and her best friend Eric Shelton go to the movies in this eighth chapter-book devoted to her mysterious adventures. When the second reel of the film they have come to see - Shoe Escape - disappears, and the theater owner accuses the wrong man, Cam steps in to solve the puzzle, and to bring the real thief to justice...
I read a number of the Cam Jansen mysteries when I was a young girl, enjoying them quite a bit, so when I started a project recently to familiarize myself with chapter-books intended for children who have just graduated from leveled early readers, I decided to start with them. I don't recall reading Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Monster Movie back then, but picking it up now, I was greatly amused by the somewhat surreal nature of Shoe Escape, with its frightening narrative of shoes leaving people's feet and congregating together. In fact, the adult reader in me was far more entertained by this unlikely film 'classic' than by the mystery itself, which was easily resolved. The target audience will no doubt find it more engrossing however, and it is to them, and to fans of the series, that I would recommend it.
I read a number of the Cam Jansen mysteries when I was a young girl, enjoying them quite a bit, so when I started a project recently to familiarize myself with chapter-books intended for children who have just graduated from leveled early readers, I decided to start with them. I don't recall reading Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Monster Movie back then, but picking it up now, I was greatly amused by the somewhat surreal nature of Shoe Escape, with its frightening narrative of shoes leaving people's feet and congregating together. In fact, the adult reader in me was far more entertained by this unlikely film 'classic' than by the mystery itself, which was easily resolved. The target audience will no doubt find it more engrossing however, and it is to them, and to fans of the series, that I would recommend it.
February 9, 2017
This book was boring. Nothing very interesting about it and it ended too quickly.
April 25, 2019
RATING: 4 STARS
(Review Not on Blog)
*Please Note that the following review is the general review on the Cam Jansen Mysteries *
I loved this series as a kid. I believe I was about 6 to 8 when I read these books and it would be the beginning of my love of mysteries. Cam Jansen, about 10 years old, uses her photographic memory to solve mysteries. They remind me of Agatha Christie novels but for children beginning to read chapter books. I would call these one step above the easy readers.
(Review Not on Blog)
*Please Note that the following review is the general review on the Cam Jansen Mysteries *
I loved this series as a kid. I believe I was about 6 to 8 when I read these books and it would be the beginning of my love of mysteries. Cam Jansen, about 10 years old, uses her photographic memory to solve mysteries. They remind me of Agatha Christie novels but for children beginning to read chapter books. I would call these one step above the easy readers.
May 5, 2019
These are so comforting to me. 💜💜💜💜💜
October 20, 2022
2.5/5
I was pretty disappointed with this story, especially since I had previously read and enjoyed Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Gold Coins
First of all, the title should be renamed to Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Shoe Movie since the story revolves around the screening of a movie called Shoe Escape.
Next, I thought this story focused too much on the details of the Shoe Escape movie, which was a really weird movie and didn't add much to the storyline.
Finally, the mystery was pretty weak...
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Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away.
I was pretty disappointed with this story, especially since I had previously read and enjoyed Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Gold Coins
First of all, the title should be renamed to Cam Jansen: The Mystery of the Shoe Movie since the story revolves around the screening of a movie called Shoe Escape.
Next, I thought this story focused too much on the details of the Shoe Escape movie, which was a really weird movie and didn't add much to the storyline.
Finally, the mystery was pretty weak...
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Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away.
November 29, 2024
This was another entry in the long beginner reading series, Cam Jansen. They're great chapter books for early readers, especially if you're fond of mysteries. In Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Monster Movie, the second reel (dated) of a new horror movie Cam, her friend, and parents go to see, goes missing. It's up to Cam, who has a photographic memory, to the culprit. The case looks easy to solve, especially when all the fingers point to a man who runs a competitive movie house down the street. This was an okay read. It was pretty basic, but I can see a kid who's starting to read chapter books enjoying it. My rating - 3/5
May 2, 2025
This one seemed a little off compared to the previous books in the series. So a movie star just happens to live in the same town as the Jansens, and she just invites them into her apartment when they show up at the door? I also thought Cam's Dad was acting odd at the movie theater. Not my favorite of the series.
November 29, 2017
I like this book because it was interesting because it had a mystery in Shoe Escape. Cam and her dad and mom and her friend Eric went to the movies to watch Shoe Escape. They went to the theater and found a mystery because the second reel of the movie was gone.
April 30, 2019
Luisa: my favorite part was that Cam's dad didn't like to stop watching the movie.
Karen: this book was a great chance to learn about what a film used to be! We looked up pictures of old reels and projectors and talked about things she had never seen before.
Karen: this book was a great chance to learn about what a film used to be! We looked up pictures of old reels and projectors and talked about things she had never seen before.
October 25, 2024
I read this series in 1986. But at the time I had to wait for the next one and I moved on to the next thing. This one was great. The mum accompanied the two kids to the house and solved the mystery. I assumed this series has been revised to be more socially aware. Highly recommend!
October 5, 2017
Out of the series so far, the weakest story. A large portion of the book is spent on the happenings and plot of the movie being watched instead of the action of the mystery.
November 18, 2018
I am EMBARRASSED !The badguy's name is Angela Kane in the story!!!!!!!
April 22, 2019
The cues for solving the case are a little farfetched.. yet, it's still an interesting story.
October 7, 2020
Cam saves a man wrongfully accused of stealing a movie reel by looking at her mental pictures and putting clues together.
January 20, 2021
Movie dab
Awesome management sick scary games but it’s not like the app crashes when you start playing it like that’s Badean the game
Awesome management sick scary games but it’s not like the app crashes when you start playing it like that’s Badean the game
Read
March 12, 2023Read aloud with Andrew
April 21, 2011
The original Cam Jansen series follows the exploits of 10-year-old 5th grader Jennifer "the Camera" (aka "Cam") Jansen and her best friend, classmate, and neighbor Eric Shelton. Cam got her nickname because of her photographic memory. All she has to do is say "Click," and Cam can remember everything she's seen, which comes in pretty handy when trying to solve mysteries.
David Adler has written several beginning chapter book series, but Cam Jansen is one of the earliest and most successful. He's been writing the series since 1980 and now writes roughly one volume per year. He has also started a Young Cam Jansen series of even simpler chapter books. Reading level wise, I'd say children they'd interest children from kindergarden through fifth grade who are just starting to read chapter books. I didn't read any of the the young Cam Jansen books, but it looks like they're more limited in scope and probably would be considered "baby books" to anyone beyond 2nd grade.
Because the books are so short, I read essentially the first half of the series and the 25th anniversary special "The Valentine Day Baby Mystery" where Cam's mom has twins, ending Cam's only child status, and Eric's mom has her car stolen, only to be returned when Cam's quick thinking discovers the thief.
Overall I was surprised at how engaging these stories were. I would totally recommend them to children just starting to read chapter books. The print is big and there are still several black and white drawings scattered throughout the text, making them an easy transition from picture books. Plus, they're well-written enough that I think they can nudge children to move on to better quality titles as they move on to longer chapter books.
Of course they're not perfect, though. It seems that adults Cam and Eric interact with choose to not accept Cam's photographic memory only when it's necessary to create tension in the story. Otherwise most adults take for granted that this 10-year-old can solve diamond thefts and bank robberies. Still, it has to be empowering for kids to read about someone close to their age solving mysteries like that.
I was also kind of bothered by the way Cam always ends up being right. Sometimes she comes off as a little too cocky and unwilling to listen to others. In nearly every story Eric plays the wet blanket suggesting that they tell an adult what they've discovered rather than trying to catch the bad guy on their own. However Cam always forges ahead and ends up getting her suspect. Again, I'm sure kids love the feeling of accomplishment, but sometimes it feels like Cam's walking the fine line between extreme confidence and recklessness, as in the Chocolate Fudge Mystery where she trespasses into someone's back yard just because she thinks it's weird that no one's home. Her dad and Eric both tell her she shouldn't be doing this, but Cam doesn't care because she's certain there's a mystery to be solved. She turns out be right (there's a bank robber hiding in the house) and her disregard for strangers' privacy is forgotten.
And honestly, that's the problem I had with these books when I was little. While it was cool to read about a kid doing cool stuff like solving robberies, I could always tell that the stories weren't quite true to real life. I guess that's why I always preferred stories of kids doing amazing things that were based off real stories like Island of the Blue Dolphins or at least seemed more realistic.
My husband, however, loved these books as a kid and said he read every one he could get his hands on when he was younger, so I guess that's at least some proof of their appeal to both sexes. Both libraries I checked these books out from had multiple copies of the titles in this series and even then I had trouble finding all the titles actually on the shelf, so they continue to be popular titles. I think they would be great additions to a school or public library collection.
David Adler has written several beginning chapter book series, but Cam Jansen is one of the earliest and most successful. He's been writing the series since 1980 and now writes roughly one volume per year. He has also started a Young Cam Jansen series of even simpler chapter books. Reading level wise, I'd say children they'd interest children from kindergarden through fifth grade who are just starting to read chapter books. I didn't read any of the the young Cam Jansen books, but it looks like they're more limited in scope and probably would be considered "baby books" to anyone beyond 2nd grade.
Because the books are so short, I read essentially the first half of the series and the 25th anniversary special "The Valentine Day Baby Mystery" where Cam's mom has twins, ending Cam's only child status, and Eric's mom has her car stolen, only to be returned when Cam's quick thinking discovers the thief.
Overall I was surprised at how engaging these stories were. I would totally recommend them to children just starting to read chapter books. The print is big and there are still several black and white drawings scattered throughout the text, making them an easy transition from picture books. Plus, they're well-written enough that I think they can nudge children to move on to better quality titles as they move on to longer chapter books.
Of course they're not perfect, though. It seems that adults Cam and Eric interact with choose to not accept Cam's photographic memory only when it's necessary to create tension in the story. Otherwise most adults take for granted that this 10-year-old can solve diamond thefts and bank robberies. Still, it has to be empowering for kids to read about someone close to their age solving mysteries like that.
I was also kind of bothered by the way Cam always ends up being right. Sometimes she comes off as a little too cocky and unwilling to listen to others. In nearly every story Eric plays the wet blanket suggesting that they tell an adult what they've discovered rather than trying to catch the bad guy on their own. However Cam always forges ahead and ends up getting her suspect. Again, I'm sure kids love the feeling of accomplishment, but sometimes it feels like Cam's walking the fine line between extreme confidence and recklessness, as in the Chocolate Fudge Mystery where she trespasses into someone's back yard just because she thinks it's weird that no one's home. Her dad and Eric both tell her she shouldn't be doing this, but Cam doesn't care because she's certain there's a mystery to be solved. She turns out be right (there's a bank robber hiding in the house) and her disregard for strangers' privacy is forgotten.
And honestly, that's the problem I had with these books when I was little. While it was cool to read about a kid doing cool stuff like solving robberies, I could always tell that the stories weren't quite true to real life. I guess that's why I always preferred stories of kids doing amazing things that were based off real stories like Island of the Blue Dolphins or at least seemed more realistic.
My husband, however, loved these books as a kid and said he read every one he could get his hands on when he was younger, so I guess that's at least some proof of their appeal to both sexes. Both libraries I checked these books out from had multiple copies of the titles in this series and even then I had trouble finding all the titles actually on the shelf, so they continue to be popular titles. I think they would be great additions to a school or public library collection.
February 20, 2017
This wasn't one of the better Cam Jansen mysteries. My son was frustrated because he wasn't given all of the clues, so it kind of defeated the purpose of having him read mysteries.
February 1, 2024
During Monster Movie Month, Cam and her family go to the theater to see “Shoe Escape.” Cam’s father loves the movie and can’t wait to see it again. In the refreshment line, Mr. Bender, owner of a competing movie theater, demands a fuller popcorn bucket. Behind him is a woman with a large red hat. At the beginning of the movie, Cam recognizes the actress, Angela Kane. Part way through the movie, the screen goes blank. The theater manager announces that they are having trouble with the film. With a little investigation, Cam finds out that the second reel is missing. Her mental camera matches a suspicious phone call, the woman in the red hat, and Angela Kane and discovers who took the second reel.
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com
©2024 Kathy Maxwell at https://bookskidslike.com
May 3, 2010
Weird. Weird, weird, weird.
I really enjoy reading the Cam Jansen series of books with our girls, but I didn't really like this one. Our girls thought it was okay. At least Cam's mother goes with her and Eric to confront Angela Kane.
I really enjoy reading the Cam Jansen series of books with our girls, but I didn't really like this one. Our girls thought it was okay. At least Cam's mother goes with her and Eric to confront Angela Kane.
March 29, 2012
This one was my favorite so far. The Cam Jansen series is loved series. This book had many events take place which made the mystery even trickier to figure out. I like this book for many reasons. Children would love this book because how fun and exciting all of Cam’s adventures are. I would use this in a future classroom to teach about surroundings or movies. Cam was always aware of her surroundings which is what made her so good at figuring out the mystery. I love this series and I could see these books being read by all sorts of ages.
March 25, 2016
I can't believe I forgot about this series. I used to love it so much when I was in elementary school. These books were probably the first chapter books I ever read and I can remember as a child pretending I had a photographic memory when I was taking tests I class.
Wow I can't believe he is still writing books for this series that so wonderful. I loved every book that I read of this series although it's been so long I can hardly remember which ones except this one because it was the first.
Wow I can't believe he is still writing books for this series that so wonderful. I loved every book that I read of this series although it's been so long I can hardly remember which ones except this one because it was the first.
September 8, 2009
I really like Cam Jansen books a lot, but the one thing that I don't like is that she often does things I would consider dangerous while she is solving a mystery. She doesn't do anything questionable in the Young Cam Jansen series, BTW. Well, they are still entertaining and gives me a lot to talk about with my son about what not to do.
April 23, 2013
I learned that we should not complain, especially in public because it would set a bad example for other people (especially children). If something is wrong with the quality of the product or service, explain kindly and calmly. I also learned that everybody has a motive (or reason) behind their decisions and we should have the right motives.
October 30, 2010
In the movie the shoes came alive. They were attacking the humans. Then the show got shut off. It was because that the actress stole the other part of the movie because she thought that she didn't act good in it.
July 24, 2011
This book would probably be very enjoyable to read if I were 7. Unfortunately I am not. We listened to this as an audio book on a long drive. This book helped to make the drive even longer. But like I said if I were 7 or 8 I might love it. My daughter has read many many of these books.
August 13, 2012
Who would steal the second real of a third rate monster movie? Cam and Eric are on the case.
Lots of fun, and actually some pretty astute observations for a kids' book. I was impressed....and entertained!
Lots of fun, and actually some pretty astute observations for a kids' book. I was impressed....and entertained!
June 25, 2014
This book is interesting because it's mysterious, and partly crime solving. I enjoy both mysteries and crime solving books. The twist in this book will blow you away. (I don't want to ruin it for you though so I won't tell you what it is haha).
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February 28, 2015
Ages 8 & Up • A fifth-grader uses her photographic memory, her mother, and her friend Eric to find a missing reel of a monster film they go to see.
Read
June 1, 2008Someone steels a tape to a monster movie.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews