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Ballpark Mysteries #8
The Missing Marlin
It's the eighth inning! The Missing Marlin is book #8 in our early chapter book mystery series, where each book is set in a different American ballpark!
Mike and Kate are in Miami visiting Kate's Uncle Oliver—and the Miami Marlins ballpark, of course! Uncle Oliver is in charge of keeping the new fish tanks at the ballpark fully stocked, but strange things keep happening. Kate swears she saw an endangered sea turtle in one of the tanks. Then some of Uncle Oliver's rare fish go missing, including his favorite, Marlin. Something fishy is going on in Miami!
The Missing Marlin includes several pages of "Dugout Notes," fun facts about Miami's recently built ballpark with its homerun statue, fish tanks, and swimming pool.
Cross Ron Roy's A to Z Mystery series with Matt Christopher's sports books and you get the Ballpark Mysteries: fun, puzzling whodunits aimed at the younger brothers and sisters of John Feinstein fans.
Mike and Kate are in Miami visiting Kate's Uncle Oliver—and the Miami Marlins ballpark, of course! Uncle Oliver is in charge of keeping the new fish tanks at the ballpark fully stocked, but strange things keep happening. Kate swears she saw an endangered sea turtle in one of the tanks. Then some of Uncle Oliver's rare fish go missing, including his favorite, Marlin. Something fishy is going on in Miami!
The Missing Marlin includes several pages of "Dugout Notes," fun facts about Miami's recently built ballpark with its homerun statue, fish tanks, and swimming pool.
Cross Ron Roy's A to Z Mystery series with Matt Christopher's sports books and you get the Ballpark Mysteries: fun, puzzling whodunits aimed at the younger brothers and sisters of John Feinstein fans.
114 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2014
30 people are currently reading
279 people want to read
About the author
David A. Kelly
66 books95 followersDavid A. Kelly is the author of over 30 children's books, including the bestselling Ballpark Mysteries series, the MVP series, the brand-new Football Mysteries series, and more.
Mr. Kelly is also the author of the early reader, Babe Ruth and the Baseball Curse and the picture books Tee Time on the Moon and Miracle Mud: Lena Blackburne and Secret Mud that Changed Baseball.
He has written about travel and technology for the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Sun Times, and many other publications. Mr. Kelly lives in Newton, MA, with his family.
For more information, visit David’s webpage – www.davidakellybooks.com. He's available for school and library visits, in person or virtually.
Mr. Kelly is also the author of the early reader, Babe Ruth and the Baseball Curse and the picture books Tee Time on the Moon and Miracle Mud: Lena Blackburne and Secret Mud that Changed Baseball.
He has written about travel and technology for the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Sun Times, and many other publications. Mr. Kelly lives in Newton, MA, with his family.
For more information, visit David’s webpage – www.davidakellybooks.com. He's available for school and library visits, in person or virtually.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 24, 2021
This is one of my favorites. I loved the atmosphere and the emphasis on Florida wildlife.
FULL REVIEW OF THE SERIES:
This series has a lot going for it. The characters feel well-drawn (though it’s not heavy on characterization) and the mysteries are quite well done for this age group, not dummied down yet with enough well-placed clues that astute young detectives will figure out whodunit before the big reveal (while including enough red herrings to keep them guessing most of the way).
I like that Mike and Kate feature equally in the book (it’s not a “boy” book or a “girl” book), they both like baseball (but neither is an incredible talent), they are both smart (without being unrealistic brainiacs), both good at solving the mysteries. They feel very relatable and like normal kids. I think boys and girls would equally enjoy this book. I appreciate that Kate is learning Spanish, and that she often researches the locations they travel to ahead of time. There’s a bit of humor and usually a cheesy joke or two for kids who like that, courtesy of Mike (but fortunately no potty humor). They are respectful to one another and there’s no bickering or rivalry. The parents don’t feature much, but again, the relationship is positive. Kate’s parents are divorced, but it is presented as amicable.
I imagine many kids will come to these books because they have a love of baseball but we came to them with very little knowledge of the sport. I chose them because they were well-reviewed and my son has enjoyed mystery books in the past. I was pleasantly surprised by how engaged I was with the baseball aspect, and it really sparked my son’s interest in the sport. Usually there are a few “ballgame” moments with Mike and Kate watching some plays on the field, but it’s more focused on the mystery than the game play. Of course, all the mysteries involve either ballplayers or some aspect of the team or stadium. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the distinctive characteristics of each ballpark. I also appreciate that many of the books give a glimpse into some local culture or history and local landmarks of the city. The back matter provides further notes about the players, ballparks, city, and history mentioned within the story. They are effortlessly educational while being primarily entertaining.
As a parent, I do have a few qualms about the kids running around in large ballpark stadiums (including out-of-the-way places not frequented by crowds) and surrounding areas in unfamiliar cities without a parent around. They also go off with adults they barely know (usually staff at the ballpark, so not exactly “strangers” but…) some of whom they suspect of committing crimes (usually involving theft or some sort of threats to the ballpark or a player) but at least the kids are always together and, of course, it’s the way the kids are able to be heroes and solve the crime themselves. Some of the books are a little heavier on the exposure to danger than others but most are pretty tame and, of course, all ends well. Also, the kids sometimes look for evidence in an office or a person’s backpack or something like that because they suspect the person of having committed the crime—but, of course, they have no warrant or legal right to do so and sometimes it’s a little close to trespassing or, at least, significant snooping. But, again, the positives of the book outweigh these few quibbles for me.
Overall, I highly recommend the series to young readers who enjoy mysteries and baseball. My son loves them and we have read almost every one in the series. I personally like them better than Magic Treehouse and I think they would appeal to fans of Magic Treehouse type books, too.
FULL REVIEW OF THE SERIES:
This series has a lot going for it. The characters feel well-drawn (though it’s not heavy on characterization) and the mysteries are quite well done for this age group, not dummied down yet with enough well-placed clues that astute young detectives will figure out whodunit before the big reveal (while including enough red herrings to keep them guessing most of the way).
I like that Mike and Kate feature equally in the book (it’s not a “boy” book or a “girl” book), they both like baseball (but neither is an incredible talent), they are both smart (without being unrealistic brainiacs), both good at solving the mysteries. They feel very relatable and like normal kids. I think boys and girls would equally enjoy this book. I appreciate that Kate is learning Spanish, and that she often researches the locations they travel to ahead of time. There’s a bit of humor and usually a cheesy joke or two for kids who like that, courtesy of Mike (but fortunately no potty humor). They are respectful to one another and there’s no bickering or rivalry. The parents don’t feature much, but again, the relationship is positive. Kate’s parents are divorced, but it is presented as amicable.
I imagine many kids will come to these books because they have a love of baseball but we came to them with very little knowledge of the sport. I chose them because they were well-reviewed and my son has enjoyed mystery books in the past. I was pleasantly surprised by how engaged I was with the baseball aspect, and it really sparked my son’s interest in the sport. Usually there are a few “ballgame” moments with Mike and Kate watching some plays on the field, but it’s more focused on the mystery than the game play. Of course, all the mysteries involve either ballplayers or some aspect of the team or stadium. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the distinctive characteristics of each ballpark. I also appreciate that many of the books give a glimpse into some local culture or history and local landmarks of the city. The back matter provides further notes about the players, ballparks, city, and history mentioned within the story. They are effortlessly educational while being primarily entertaining.
As a parent, I do have a few qualms about the kids running around in large ballpark stadiums (including out-of-the-way places not frequented by crowds) and surrounding areas in unfamiliar cities without a parent around. They also go off with adults they barely know (usually staff at the ballpark, so not exactly “strangers” but…) some of whom they suspect of committing crimes (usually involving theft or some sort of threats to the ballpark or a player) but at least the kids are always together and, of course, it’s the way the kids are able to be heroes and solve the crime themselves. Some of the books are a little heavier on the exposure to danger than others but most are pretty tame and, of course, all ends well. Also, the kids sometimes look for evidence in an office or a person’s backpack or something like that because they suspect the person of having committed the crime—but, of course, they have no warrant or legal right to do so and sometimes it’s a little close to trespassing or, at least, significant snooping. But, again, the positives of the book outweigh these few quibbles for me.
Overall, I highly recommend the series to young readers who enjoy mysteries and baseball. My son loves them and we have read almost every one in the series. I personally like them better than Magic Treehouse and I think they would appeal to fans of Magic Treehouse type books, too.
March 16, 2017
Ballpark: Miami Marlins
We meet a new relative of Mike and Kate, Uncle Owen. And of course his occupation is somehow related to baseball! He supplies the fish for and maintains the aquariums in the backstop behind home plate at the Miami Marlins ballpark. I had no idea the ballpark actually has aquariums, so that was a neat fact to learn. Uncle Owen has discovered a new type of fish that's perfect for a ballpark, but after the unveiling his prize fish goes missing and it's up to Mike and Kate to track down the culprit.
There's plenty of suspicion to go around as the sleuthing duo sift through the clues. There's enough swerves to even keep adult readers on their toes and guessing until the end. The apprehension and confession is a little too pat, but then again it's feasible there were some legal wrangling going on to facilitate that which wouldn't be of interest in a children's book (you have to watch Law & Order for that!).
This book is packed with references to Miami and Florida. The kids eat a Cuban sandwich instead of hot dogs. Uncle Owen goes over several animals native to the area, including the panther (or puma or cougar or mountain lion, depending where else you live). Much like The Philly Fake, the ballpark's city's culture was really woven into the story.
My four year old son was most interested in the unique baseball fish. The chapter cliffhangers also had him begging to keep reading one more chapter.
The dugout notes provide a good bit of history of the young Marlins baseball franchise, as well as the unique features of the team's ballpark and local Miami wildlife.
We meet a new relative of Mike and Kate, Uncle Owen. And of course his occupation is somehow related to baseball! He supplies the fish for and maintains the aquariums in the backstop behind home plate at the Miami Marlins ballpark. I had no idea the ballpark actually has aquariums, so that was a neat fact to learn. Uncle Owen has discovered a new type of fish that's perfect for a ballpark, but after the unveiling his prize fish goes missing and it's up to Mike and Kate to track down the culprit.
There's plenty of suspicion to go around as the sleuthing duo sift through the clues. There's enough swerves to even keep adult readers on their toes and guessing until the end. The apprehension and confession is a little too pat, but then again it's feasible there were some legal wrangling going on to facilitate that which wouldn't be of interest in a children's book (you have to watch Law & Order for that!).
This book is packed with references to Miami and Florida. The kids eat a Cuban sandwich instead of hot dogs. Uncle Owen goes over several animals native to the area, including the panther (or puma or cougar or mountain lion, depending where else you live). Much like The Philly Fake, the ballpark's city's culture was really woven into the story.
My four year old son was most interested in the unique baseball fish. The chapter cliffhangers also had him begging to keep reading one more chapter.
The dugout notes provide a good bit of history of the young Marlins baseball franchise, as well as the unique features of the team's ballpark and local Miami wildlife.
June 18, 2017
Great series. Two kids go to ballparks all around the country and their activities reflect that city/team. Here they eat Cuban sandwiches instead of hotdogs. Also the real fish tanks are described and the mystery surrounds a special missing fish. Notes at the end are great facts about that team or ballpark.
July 3, 2018
It was a great book becaus I love baseball
November 8, 2019
There is a lot of facts about the ball park
October 25, 2021
I love learning about the different stadiums through these fun kid mysteries. The Marlins stadium sounds really fun. And it’s and interesting and topical mystery.
March 28, 2014
I love a great mystery. And I love the settings in David A. Kelly’s Ballpark Mysteries. Whether you’re a baseball fan or not, just reading about the major league parks is intriguing.
The title “The Missing Marlin” drew me in. How can a great big fish be missing? The actual marlin in the story is an interesting twist.
Kate and Mike are appealing characters who read like regular kids (except for their adventures) that any second - fourth grader will want them as best friends.
The extras in the back are an added bonus. Who knew there was a Bobblehead Museum at the Marlin ballpark!
The title “The Missing Marlin” drew me in. How can a great big fish be missing? The actual marlin in the story is an interesting twist.
Kate and Mike are appealing characters who read like regular kids (except for their adventures) that any second - fourth grader will want them as best friends.
The extras in the back are an added bonus. Who knew there was a Bobblehead Museum at the Marlin ballpark!
February 25, 2014
With its solid storyline, a cast of engaging characters, and a trip outside the Miami Marlins' stadium to a reserve for animals rescued from poachers and smugglers, which ties cleverly into the main mystery at the ballpark, this is one of the better books in this entertaining series for kids. Read our full review, here: http://www.mysteriousreviews.com/myst...
February 17, 2025
Another winner in the Ballpark Mysteries early-chapter-book mystery series. This time the cousins are in Florida. They snorkel and watch baseball at the Marlins' ballpark. We join them in looking at the amazing fish tanks behind home plate, and in helping solve a mystery involving missing fish.
I received this book for free from the Goodreads First Reads program. Thank you!
I received this book for free from the Goodreads First Reads program. Thank you!
November 16, 2016
A good read, but I did not find this ballpark as interesting as some of the older ones that exist. Also, I didn't feel that the story meshed as well with the ballpark as the previous stories in this series.
November 26, 2014
I liked it. One of these very rare baseball fish gets stolen and they have to find out who stole it.
December 4, 2014
I didn't like it. Every time I turned a page I got more scared.
May 31, 2015
It was rocking. It was awesome. It was like a light hanging down from my ceiling.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews