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Greetings from Somewhere #6
The Mystery of the Suspicious Spices
Ethan and Ella discover some suspicious spices in a market in Mumbai, India, in the sixth book of Greetings from Somewhere, an exciting series about mystery, travel, and adventure.
Ethan and Ella venture into the bustling markets of Mumbai, India, where there are tons of beautiful sights and smells—from silky fabrics to bread being baked to jars of spices. When one of the spice sellers starts getting complaints about his saffron, he is beside himself. His spices have always been known to be the purest in the market. Ethan and Ella are on the case—and they soon discover that someone has been meddling with the spices!
With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Greetings from Somewhere chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.
Ethan and Ella venture into the bustling markets of Mumbai, India, where there are tons of beautiful sights and smells—from silky fabrics to bread being baked to jars of spices. When one of the spice sellers starts getting complaints about his saffron, he is beside himself. His spices have always been known to be the purest in the market. Ethan and Ella are on the case—and they soon discover that someone has been meddling with the spices!
With easy-to-read language and illustrations on almost every page, the Greetings from Somewhere chapter books are perfect for beginning readers.
128 pages, Paperback
First published December 9, 2014
17 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
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May 23, 2022I rarely write negative reviews, but so much of this book was problematic that I wonder if the books set in other countries are equally inaccurate.
The sari looks nothing like a sari in the pictures. How did Sani manage to wear it?
What emerald green spice do you find so commonly in the market? How come I've never seen it?
And worst of all, the comment 'sakala'. Please. Don't use Google translate without verifying what native speakers of the language use. Just don't.
https://www.varshaseshan.com/the-myst...
The sari looks nothing like a sari in the pictures. How did Sani manage to wear it?
What emerald green spice do you find so commonly in the market? How come I've never seen it?
And worst of all, the comment 'sakala'. Please. Don't use Google translate without verifying what native speakers of the language use. Just don't.
https://www.varshaseshan.com/the-myst...
January 27, 2021
Being an Indian I could find a few flaws in the book. Seemed like the research for the book was done on Wikipedia. Saffron is generally not sold as a powder in India, it is sold as strands and quite expensive. Tamarind is generally not used in desserts in India.
I have never heard ‘Sakal’ being used to mean ‘gross ‘as in ‘unacceptable’ but as ‘without tax or other contributions having been deducted I.e gross profit/income etc.’
Most people in Mumbai are fond of chai i.e. tea, certainly not black coffee.
I can’t generalise and may be Deepak and Sani do.
But any spice seller worth his ‘salt’ would know if his/her spices were adulterated. Again this is a children’s book and maybe I am overthinking it.
I have never heard ‘Sakal’ being used to mean ‘gross ‘as in ‘unacceptable’ but as ‘without tax or other contributions having been deducted I.e gross profit/income etc.’
Most people in Mumbai are fond of chai i.e. tea, certainly not black coffee.
I can’t generalise and may be Deepak and Sani do.
But any spice seller worth his ‘salt’ would know if his/her spices were adulterated. Again this is a children’s book and maybe I am overthinking it.
May 26, 2021
The plot is very thin, and I want to quibble with some details (Saffron sold as a powder? Really? Is this common? And Deepak and Sani don't notice that their spices look wrong? Or smell wrong? Really?). We've read two of this series. We'll probably read the others as they're scheduled with our geography curriculum, but I'm underwhelmed so far.
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December 8, 2020Eleanor’s favorite part was when they figured out who was messing with the spices.
July 31, 2022
6th book in the series about young twins, Ethan and Ella, travelling around the world with their parents (their mother is a travel writer) - in this one, they solve a mystery involving a spice shop in Mumbai, India.
December 9, 2017
It was okay.
July 17, 2019
Simple story, but exposes the reader to another culture.
December 29, 2022
Another good one! The kids are in Mumbai and a friends spice shop gets hacked!
March 1, 2015
Ethan and Ella's world travels have taken them to Mumbai, India, where they enjoy all the exotic sights and sounds. But when they befriend a spice seller whose store seems to be under a mysterious attack, the twins' problem-solving skills come in handy.
The mystery in this one is extremely easy to solve -- not necessarily a bad thing, since those children who do so will likely feel clever when they discover their predictions were right. I'm not thrilled with the way the twins are essentially rewarded for making unsafe choices and then lying about them. Still, this is a decent addition to an otherwise very good series, so it is worth adding. While this book is the sixth installment, it stands on its own just fine, with only a few brief references to the previous tales -- enough to entice but not frustrate readers. As part of the Little Simon early chapter books collection, this story has simple language, frequent illustrations, and a large font, making it perfect for students who are just moving on from picture books and early readers.
The mystery in this one is extremely easy to solve -- not necessarily a bad thing, since those children who do so will likely feel clever when they discover their predictions were right. I'm not thrilled with the way the twins are essentially rewarded for making unsafe choices and then lying about them. Still, this is a decent addition to an otherwise very good series, so it is worth adding. While this book is the sixth installment, it stands on its own just fine, with only a few brief references to the previous tales -- enough to entice but not frustrate readers. As part of the Little Simon early chapter books collection, this story has simple language, frequent illustrations, and a large font, making it perfect for students who are just moving on from picture books and early readers.
May 14, 2015
Twins Ethan and Ella are in India with their parents. They explore the sights as a family. But when they visit a friend of their grandfather's, a spice merchant, they discover he is having trouble with customers complaining about bad spices. The twins offer to help solve the mystery of the spices since they have had a little experience in previous adventures.
There are pencil drawings throughout the story. They are really quite exquisite and detailed especially for a young children's novel. The pictures help speed the story along and explain some of the concepts.
The mystery itself was extremely simple. This is not necessarily a bad thing for this age group. The text is large and the details kept as simple as possible for young readers. There are a lot of Indian words and concepts which will be more difficult to read and yet adds interest. This story is advertised for ages 5-9, but I don't believe very many 5 and 6 year olds will be able to read this independently. It can certainly be read to them. I would recommend this book to advanced first graders up to third grade.
There are pencil drawings throughout the story. They are really quite exquisite and detailed especially for a young children's novel. The pictures help speed the story along and explain some of the concepts.
The mystery itself was extremely simple. This is not necessarily a bad thing for this age group. The text is large and the details kept as simple as possible for young readers. There are a lot of Indian words and concepts which will be more difficult to read and yet adds interest. This story is advertised for ages 5-9, but I don't believe very many 5 and 6 year olds will be able to read this independently. It can certainly be read to them. I would recommend this book to advanced first graders up to third grade.
May 3, 2015
Fast read. Fun series.
May 8, 2015
A good chapter book series for kids just transitioning from picture books.
May 27, 2015
I'm a sucker for this series... Fun stories at a second/third grade reading level that include a mystery AND traveling adventures! Adorable. :-)
Loved India!
Loved India!
June 1, 2018
I think this book is great for all ages.
My favorite character was Sani because she was very nice. My favorite part of the book was when they met Tufan. I don't want to say more because it would be a spoiler.
-Hailey
My favorite character was Sani because she was very nice. My favorite part of the book was when they met Tufan. I don't want to say more because it would be a spoiler.
-Hailey
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews