Mystery on Pine Lake

Cooper and Packrat, #1

by Tamra Wight, Carl DiRocco (Illustrator)

Cooper thought living at a campground would be cool. But summer’s turning out to be all chores, no fun. Cooper’s only bright spot is his new friend, Packrat, a guy who carries the world in his coat pockets and leaves his troubles behind. But trouble has come to the Wilder Family Campground and Pine Lake, where a family of loons is trying to build a nest. Someone is out to harm the loons. Is it the bully with a chip on his shoulder? The irritable camper with a shady past? Or the publicity-seeking reporter? It’s up to the boys to figure out who, why, and how to stop the culprit – before it’s too late.

Genres: Mystery, Middle Grade, Childrens, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Chapter Books

150 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2013

About the author

My first middle-grade eco-adventure Cooper and Packrat: Mystery on Pine Lake was launched by Islandport Press in Aug 2013. Now there are five books in the series! Mystery of the Missing Lynx is being released June of 2022. Carl DiRocco is the genius behind the illustrations.

I'm also the author of The Three Grumpies, illustrated by Ross Collins.

For twenty-eight years, I ran Poland Spring Campground in Maine with my husband and two children. Wildlife watching from the camp's trails, kayaking Lower Range Pond, and my family's day-to-day camp chores inspired the Cooper and Packrat adventures. I now work as a teaching assistant, and my students inspire me daily.

Some of my favorite activities are wildlife photography, geo-caching, campfires with s'mores, snowshoeing, hiking and sailing Casco Bay, Portland, Maine. I also like to hide in the Maine woods under my "cloak of invisibility", a huge poncho-shaped camouflage covering, with my camera pointed at passing porcupines, coyotes, deer or fox. You can read more about me, my books and see my wildlife photography at www.tamrawight.com.

Happy Reading!

Reviews

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! This book was amazing and I can really relate to it. I love camping and this story takes place in a campground. But soon Cooper, the main character has a bigger task to do than watching his little sister or emptying the garbage cans. There is a loon nest nearby and it is in danger! Can Cooper and his friend Packrat save the loons?

[Lynn Plourde · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so enjoyed COOPER & PACKRAT. I am NOT a mystery reader, but the author did NOT let the mystery get in the way of telling a good story. The characters are three-dimensional and oh so believable. Readers can also tell Wight has lived the campground experiences she writes about--she runs a Maine campground with her family. I loved being immersed in Cooper's campground world from doing trash duty and bathroom clean-up to all the loon details. I learned lots from this book at the same time I was entertained. The book is fast-paced, has great boy-appeal, and would be a fun family or classroom read-aloud. I'm looking forward to the next Cooper & Packrat adventure (even if it is a mystery =)!

[Karen Arendt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Calling all camp lovers: This is the book for you! Cooper and his friend Packrat are on a mission to help the loons on the lake. Someone is trying to harm the loons. The water level has increased on the lake because someone dammed up the lake. Cooper and Packrat then try to build a loon raft to help the loons despite the rising water, but someone sabotaged the raft! Who would be so cruel to such leacrful animals. There are plenty of suspects: Roy- the bully who used to be Cooper's friend; Mr. Beakman (I mean, Bakemen!) who is always grumpy and complains about the loons; and Tom, the local reporter who has a house on the other side of the lake.

This book is more than just a mystery, though. Each chapter heading has some valuable information about loons and how to protect them. Plus, Cooper has a little sister who always wants to tag along, but then causes some major complications! And Cooper's parents are so busy running the campground, they start to take Cooper and his working for granted. A great read anytime of year!

[Kinsey Crowell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is the first in the series about Cooper and Packrat. The book takes place at a campground in Maine. In Cooper and Packrat's first adventure on Pine Lake, they are on a mission to save the loons. The loons have laid eggs and it seems like someone at the campground or living nearby would like to make sure the eggs do not hatch. The dam is blocked, which causes the lake to rise, harming the first set of eggs. Cooper and Packrat are creative in their efforts to help the loons and catch the person who may be trying to harm them. This book is a great read aloud option. My students enjoyed keeping track of clues and suspicious characters in their readers' notebooks. What a great series for students who love nature or live in Maine (or both)!

[Joanne Roach-Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story! Tamra Wight does a great job of putting us in the shoes of the main character Cooper. From his distress over a bully to the dynamics of a working family - all those feelings are very real and tangible. The story is fast paced and engaging. It’s an awesome middle grade adventure! I so enjoyed learning all about loons and life at a campground. Love the focus on nature and the multifaceted relationships trying to work out a balance between preserving it and enjoying it. The illustrations by Carl DiRocco are super too - they bring the characters and settings to life. This is a wonderful book - I highly recommend it.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great choice for the nature-loving boy or girl. Very engaging characters, vivid Maine setting (anyone who's camped at an official campground will remember it immediately)and well-inserted information about loons. Would love to see it done in audio and recommended for the car trip to the campground! Or brought along for a rainy day activity. Looking forward to this series.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Living on a lake in Maine, I felt I could look out and see Cooper and Packrat paddling by! The story felt so familiar. I hope others will appreciate the beautiful loon! The inclusion of loon facts at the beginning of each chapter was a nice touch.
The death of a young child may be a bit harsh for youngsters, but it is a reasonable explanation for Mr. Beakman's behavior.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It has all my favorite things-camping, nature, loons, mystery. I hope she writes a sequel.

[Nosara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book for MCBA, it was not very good but the author had a good plot for the book and I could get through it easily. I would recommend this book for ages 8-10 because it was a bit young for me.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really sweet book that navigates friendship and family, with an added love of nature. Not plot heavy but still compelling and held my daughter's interest. Looking forward to reading more of the series.

[Renee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little slow and boring for me. This was recommended to me by a patron at my library who loves the boxcar children series.
Also, the print used in this book was very small. Didn't like that.

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐Read for Lunch Bunch Jr. for SRP. An interesting read with mystery, humor, and adventure. Wildlife preservation themes/lessons throughout made for a relevant story.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Running a campground is hard, as eleven-year-old Cooper discovers when all of his parents’ time and much of his own is subsumed in camp chores. Then there are the campers they have to put up with, like the bullying Roy who has it in for Cooper, and the surly Mr. Bakeman, who seems to have it in for the loons that Cooper loves. Still, Cooper makes a new friend in camper Packrat, who always wears a trenchcoat loaded with every possible necessity. Soon the two of them are embarked on the mystery of who is sabotaging the loons’ nest, and on building a raft so the loons can build a new nest in a safer location. Meanwhile, Cooper’s seven-year-old sister Molly is feeling more and more abandoned by both Cooper and his parents, and Cooper himself has about had it with getting no parental time himself. Where will it all end?

When I started this book, I was instantly set to dislike it because the gross-out beginning seems so over-the-top; as if the publisher told the author she had to be as gross as possible or boys wouldn’t read it. Then the first few chapters were really slow, with too much campground life detail, and I had no idea where it was going. But then, when it got into the main plot about saving the loons, I started really liking it. I think it will really appeal to kids who love birds, the environment, camping, etc.--reminded me a bit of Arthur Ransome’s ‘Coot Club,’ when kids were trying to save a coot’s nest from thoughtless tourists. I also really liked the family interaction, because it felt so real, and no one was a bad guy--it was just a realistic situation and the kids had realistic feelings about it. Packrat was a fun character, and I enjoyed Cooper as well, though I thought Roy’s turnabout was a little too predictable. I liked the chapter headings with information about loons; the information was short enough that it didn’t overwhelm the reader, and was easily skipped for those not interested. Not sure the illustrations added anything, but a camp map would have been nice; most kids will never have been to such a campground, and having the layout would have helped to explain it better than the endless descriptions. Overall, I quite liked it for younger MS readers, though it’s not really much of a mystery so the title might be misleading.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cooper spends his days at Pine Lake cleaning bathrooms, picking up trash, and doing other chores to help his family maintain the campground at Pine Lake. One of Cooper's favorite jobs, however, is acting as game warden and keeping an eye on the loons. Because his parents are so busy with the campground, Cooper usually tends to his duties alone. That is until Packrat comes along with his unusual trench coat, pockets stuffed with anything he could ever need. Cooper and Packrat become fast friends, and even the bathroom cleaning duty starts to become fun.

When out on a loon patrol, Cooper and Packrat discover that a board has been jammed into the dam, causing the lake's water level to rise. Now, the loon's nest is flooding and the eggs are in danger. The boys quickly devise a plan to help the loons, and start the investigation into who might have sabotaged the nest. Along the way, they make unlikely allies and become heroes in an unexpected way. Cooper and Packrat make quite the team!

Although this book was written for middle schoolers, I think it's very accessible to readers as young as fourth grade. The adventures of Cooper and Packrat would make for a great read aloud to kids of almost all ages. I loved that each chapter started with an interesting fact about loons, which somehow related to the events in each chapter. Tamra did a great job of blending themes of ecology and preservation into this mystery-adventure story. I'm very much looking forward to reading "Mystery of the Eagle's Nest"!

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

It would seem that Cooper has the perfect life, being the son of parents who own and run the beautiful camp grounds of Pine Lake in Maine. The problem is, his parents are always working, and unlike the visiting camp kids who come to relax and play, Cooper is always given chores to perform, such as cleaning the bathrooms and babysitting his little sister. As if this isn't bad enough his nemesis Roy the bully is forever pulling pranks on him, to gain popularity with the camp kids. Just in time, Cooper meets new camper Pete, nicknamed Packrat. They become fast friends and clever and kind Packrat even helps him with all of his chores. Cooper wants to be a game warden when he grows up, and luckily Packrat shares his love of nature as they watch over the camp grounds, particularly the loons family. When the loons lose their eggs from the nest, due to someone disrupting their habitat, Packrat and Cooper know they must solve this mystery before the loons lose another set of eggs. With a heavy storm, strange foot prints, and a couple of probable suspects, the boys find themselves in a scary life threatening situation. This eco-adventure portrays very believable likable characters with their insecurities, strengths and social challenges, who readers will truly care about. Give this to adventure seeking readers who enjoy adventures such as Cynthia Lord's Half a Chance.

[Julie Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cooper’s family has always loved the outdoors so naturally Cooper though running a campsite would be great for the family. Unfortunately the campground is so busy that he only sees his dad when they are cleaning bathrooms or picking up trash and his mom only seems to need him to watch his younger sister. Then Cooper discovers that the loons, which help draw tourists to the campground, are in danger of losing their eggs. With the help of a new friend, Packrat, Cooper discovers a way to save the loon’s eggs and unravels the mystery of who wants the loons gone.

This was a really enjoyable read. It was not a complex mystery by any means but very appropriate for grades 3-5. The length of the text was perfect for the intended age and it had just enough mystery and suspense without going too far. My students especially will enjoy that it is set in Maine.

[Ed Possing · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love kids mysteries and this is a good one. Cooper and Packrat make a great team. Packrat, especially with his interesting coat of many objects, is the kind of quirky hero readers can enjoy. And this was a well woven mystery. Even as a children's book, it kept me guessing nearly to the end. Nature fans will love the little bits of loon facts at the beginning of every chapter. Great book overall.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set at a campground in Maine, this story has an accessible plot about discovering who may want to harm the loons and how to save the loons. It is simply written so it will appeal to some reluctant readers. And, there is great information about loons at the beginning of each chapter. The black and white illustrations are great.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this debut novel by a middle-school teacher. The family situation is very real, and the kids trying to solve the mystery of who is trying to destroy the nesting area of the loons shows the power of young children helping nature and working with several people to solve a mystery. Highly recommended.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. The story was cute, and I like the illustrations. Cooper and packrat were also very amusing just as characters. This may be my age or just cynicism, but the family dynamic really bothered me, and that's why this book lost stars. However, it brought itself back, and dreally picked up in the end. I don't know if I'll read the following books, but this was okay.

[Rachel Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for M.C.B.A. and it was pretty well written. It is probably more of a 4th grade level. I learned a lot about loons, actually, but it just wasn't that interesting to me. The main character was 12, but he acted like he was 8. The author suddenly threw in some big events at the end, but overall, this wasn't really that interesting. It was my 19th M.C.B.A. book, though.

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book! It was a great summer read and really made me wish I was out on the lake. I was able to easily relate to the characters and thoroughly enjoyed the story and figuring out the mystery.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book perfectly captures what it is to grow up in Maine. Being a bit of a "bird nerd" myself, I found this book very enjoyable (even as an adult.) I whole-heartedly agree that this book deserves to be on the Maine Student Book Award list!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

It might have been my memories of camping every summer with my family and friends that influenced my love for this story but it's truly a must-read for ant middle school aged boy or girl who loves nature, camping and adventures with friends. A great message about forgiveness and acceptance too!

[Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun environmental mystery for upper elementary. Set in a Maine campground, Cooper and Packrat work to protect the loons on the lake from someone is who trying to get rid of them. The first in a series for young nature and mystery lovers.

[Denise Ortakales · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great middle grade about camping and friendship. Lots of tension and high drama. Can't go wrong reading this one.

[vannapira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun story with lots of educational stuff. It teaches us to take care of the environment and the animals.

[Marla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maine Student Book Award Nominee 2014-2015

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little mystery, a little adventure, and a great family story. We look forward to the reading the second adventure of Cooper and Packrat.

[Shelly Moody · Rating 5 out of 5]

My nine year old loved this mystery! A sign of an engaging book is the fact that he finished it in less than a week and already checked out the second book in the series from the library!