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Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter
It’s 1920s Chicago—the guns-and-gangster era of Al Capone—and it’s unusual for a girl to be selling the Tribune on the street corner. But ten-year-old Isabel Feeney is unusual . . . unusually obsessed with being a news reporter. She can’t believe her luck when she stumbles not only into a real-live murder scene, but also into her hero, the famous journalist Maude Collier. The story of how the smart, curious, loyal Isabel fights to defend the honor of her accused friend and latches on to the murder case like a dog on a pant leg makes for a winning, thoroughly entertaining middle grade mystery.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2016
25 people are currently reading
1020 people want to read
About the author
Beth Fantaskey
19 books2,280 followers Hi! I'm Beth Fantaskey, author of Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side, Jessica Rules the Dark Side, Jekel Loves Hyde, Buzz Kill and my new middle grade novel, Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter. I live in rural Pennsylvania - the setting for most of my books - with my husband, three children, a slightly dysfunctional cat, a completely dysfunctional dog, an immortal goldfish and a hermit crab named Shelldon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
July 17, 2017
I LOVE MIDDLE GRADE BOOKS ABOUT PLUCKY GIRLS INVESTIGATING MURDERS AND WANT A MILLION MORE OF THEM.
August 22, 2015
My thanks to HMH Books for Young Readers
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Point of View: Single (Isabel)
Writing: First Person | Past Tense
Setting: Chicago, Illinois
Genre: Middle Grade | Mystery
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This book is about a ten-year-old newspaper girl who has (sort of) witnessed a murder. She then tries to find out the truth behind this mess.
I enjoyed reading this book. It was actually pretty hilarious. At times though I thought it was a tad bit too slow with one too many irrelevant scenes. Still, I ended up liking this book, even I didn't fall head over heel in love with it.
Isabel was a delightful character. I usually don't like reading books with characters in such a young age because they normally find a way to annoy me. It wasn't a problem here. Isabel was funny, but not in a know-it-all, obnoxious way that I typically dislike. I loved her bravery and fierceness, which led her into trouble. Most of the time, I felt sorry for her for having to live in poverty, but Isabel seemed strong enough to withstand such hardship.
What interested me the most about this book is the fact that it was inspired by the real lives in the 1920s and I did learn a lot about the way people lived during that period. It's amazing how eminently lives have changed since then.
Generally, I think the mystery was well thought out. I did have a hard time guessing the real culprit. How the mystery came to an end was a great surprise.
All in all, this book is a good one to read. I enjoyed most of the book, except for the fact that it was a little to slow for my taste. However, I think younger readers will enjoy this book more that I did.
October 27, 2021
Really so good!!!❤️❤️
June 28, 2017
Isabel Feeney is a grubby little newsie in Prohibition Era Chicago. She's poor, cold, and struggling, but she's plucky, so you know everything is going to turn out okay. On a windy night, she hears a gunshot and finds a dead body. It's the fiancee of one her nice customers, who just couldn't be a merry murderess, could she? When the press and the popo show up to investigate, Isabel decides she'll solve the case and write about it, like her favorite reporter, Maude Collier, who is like Christine Baranski's character in Chicago
The book's plot picks up fast. All the above happens in less than sixty pages. However, the characters are predictable and the writing lacks the zingy bite of a Chicago winter. Characterizations are trite. Isabel wears her dead dad's hand-me-down clothes, signifying how poor she is. Her hair is a mess! And worse -- it's brown, the bane of mousy girls everywhere. Her house is also messy, furniture doesn't match, etc. No unique personality.
Chapters almost always end on cliffhangers, which is also predictable. It also prevents chapters from closing on emotional beats, which would have helped emphasize the grittiness of 1920s Chicago. Lacking emotion, the story feels safe. A young girl witnesses a murder, but there is no sense of danger.
If the Chicago of that era were a playground with sharp edges, a hot metal slide, and jagged rocks, this book is the rubber coating over anything that seems remotely harmful. It's a Chicago without vice, without danger, without jazz.
The book features a statistical anomaly -- a female newsie who wants to be a writer. As Maude tells Isabel, female writers -- who don't cover fashion -- are rare at that time. But it's 2017! Simply having a "strong female protagonist" isn't enough. Just over the past few months, I read some fantastic books for this age group with complex, layered girl heroes. This book, sadly, feels like a book that talks down to kids. This pair of sentences did me in: "He looked about as happy to see me as I was to see him. Which wasn't happy at all."
Wow. Thanks for explaining.
I flipped to the end, which was just as I expected -- safe, predictable, jazzless.
The book's plot picks up fast. All the above happens in less than sixty pages. However, the characters are predictable and the writing lacks the zingy bite of a Chicago winter. Characterizations are trite. Isabel wears her dead dad's hand-me-down clothes, signifying how poor she is. Her hair is a mess! And worse -- it's brown, the bane of mousy girls everywhere. Her house is also messy, furniture doesn't match, etc. No unique personality.
Chapters almost always end on cliffhangers, which is also predictable. It also prevents chapters from closing on emotional beats, which would have helped emphasize the grittiness of 1920s Chicago. Lacking emotion, the story feels safe. A young girl witnesses a murder, but there is no sense of danger.
If the Chicago of that era were a playground with sharp edges, a hot metal slide, and jagged rocks, this book is the rubber coating over anything that seems remotely harmful. It's a Chicago without vice, without danger, without jazz.
The book features a statistical anomaly -- a female newsie who wants to be a writer. As Maude tells Isabel, female writers -- who don't cover fashion -- are rare at that time. But it's 2017! Simply having a "strong female protagonist" isn't enough. Just over the past few months, I read some fantastic books for this age group with complex, layered girl heroes. This book, sadly, feels like a book that talks down to kids. This pair of sentences did me in: "He looked about as happy to see me as I was to see him. Which wasn't happy at all."
Wow. Thanks for explaining.
I flipped to the end, which was just as I expected -- safe, predictable, jazzless.
October 15, 2018
A young girl who has to roam for money for her mom and her. Isabel was just selling news papers when she heard a gun shot she ran towards the shot and saw her best friend holding a dead body. Will Mrs.Giddings be accused of the murder.
December 5, 2017
Great book. Full of action and mystery. I recommend it.
November 7, 2018
great mystery book.
April 1, 2019
AMAZING!!!!!!
September 7, 2019
This was a fun read, but I think I only really enjoyed it for the first half. After that it just got a little boring.
February 20, 2016
The title character, Isabel Feeney, can best be described as plucky. For a kid who is stuck selling newspapers in the 1920s Chicago just to make ends meet for her and her mother, Isabel has big dreams of one day selling the news in a different way: by reporting it. She gets her chance after inadvertently getting caught up in the murder of a small-time gangster. Along the way Isabel finds that first appearances can be deceiving (sometimes) and that following her dream is worthwhile if dangerous.
The short chapters are fairly informative and keep the pace of the book quick, good considering this middle grade book is just over 300 pages. Sometimes Fantaskey keeps things a little too simple, but I suppose that's okay since the target age group needs the encouragement of reading into the clues rather than the challenge all the way through. The story is a bit idealistic, but the characters are interesting and have some depth, even when they're mostly absent. A fairly good middle grade mystery that can be enjoyed by parents as well as kids.
Note: ARC received via Amazon Vine in exchange for review.
The short chapters are fairly informative and keep the pace of the book quick, good considering this middle grade book is just over 300 pages. Sometimes Fantaskey keeps things a little too simple, but I suppose that's okay since the target age group needs the encouragement of reading into the clues rather than the challenge all the way through. The story is a bit idealistic, but the characters are interesting and have some depth, even when they're mostly absent. A fairly good middle grade mystery that can be enjoyed by parents as well as kids.
Note: ARC received via Amazon Vine in exchange for review.
April 16, 2016
3.5
This is a solid, better than most, mystery for kids (especially girls) set in prohibition-Era Chicago. The author does a great job capturing the time and place and casts her story with a diverse group of characters. The protagonist is spunky, ambitious, and not afraid to speak her mind.
Fantanaskey does a great job of incorporating social issues into the book - women's rights, children vs. career, poor children working instead of attending school - without getting didactic or offering any opinions.
It's also great to see a good stand-alone title in a sea of series books. My one complaint, tho, is the length. It did feel a little on the long side for a book for this age group. The chapters are quite short (average length was prob. 3 pages) which does make the book read quickly. Make sure to offer to kids that are already solid readers.
Great for fans of the Al Capone series by Choldenko.
This is a solid, better than most, mystery for kids (especially girls) set in prohibition-Era Chicago. The author does a great job capturing the time and place and casts her story with a diverse group of characters. The protagonist is spunky, ambitious, and not afraid to speak her mind.
Fantanaskey does a great job of incorporating social issues into the book - women's rights, children vs. career, poor children working instead of attending school - without getting didactic or offering any opinions.
It's also great to see a good stand-alone title in a sea of series books. My one complaint, tho, is the length. It did feel a little on the long side for a book for this age group. The chapters are quite short (average length was prob. 3 pages) which does make the book read quickly. Make sure to offer to kids that are already solid readers.
Great for fans of the Al Capone series by Choldenko.
June 4, 2016
Ten-year-old Isabel, is a newsgirl selling papers in Chicago during the crime filled 1920's when prohibition kept criminals, especially Al Capone's crew busy working around the law. While Isabel is out selling newspapers, she witnesses a murder involving one of her favorite elegant customers. Since Isabel's true goal is to become a news reporter just like her heroine the famous and well respected Maude Collier, who works for the Chicago Tribune, Isabel automatically follows the sound of a gun shot, fearing for her customer life. Inspired by the lives of five real female reporters who wrote for the Chicago Tribune in the 1920's, the historical setting shares true details such as young Isabel's visit to the real Murderess Row at the Cook County Jail, to investigate. This is an exciting historical mystery with a scrappy heroine, whose impulsive nature often puts her in harms way. Readers who love detective stories won't be able to put this suspenseful winner down.
July 27, 2016
I was amused by someone here who castigated this book for not espousing 2016 views on women and on the disabled. But this is NOT a book about 2016, it's about the 1920s, and Fantaskey does a pretty good job of recreating Chicago in the age of gangsters and the sort of glamorous women who killed as depicted in the musical "Chicago." Isabel is spunky as they come, with a gosh darn sort of manner that is a bit over the top, but kid readers will enjoy her adventure. This would get 3.5 if GoodReads ever allowed it.
February 7, 2017
Apparently everyone loves this book, but I found it outrageously unbelievable. I couldn't stop sighing and rolling my eyes over the absurd scenarios and how modern the dialogue sounded. What bothered me most of all was how the impoverished main character seemed like a privileged kid from 2016; no reality of hardship affected her behaviors, thoughts, or expectations for the future. I was not impressed, but I'll be charitable and give a third star because the plot included some striking historical details and approaches the time period from an angle unrepresented in juvenile fiction.
January 10, 2021
I read this book aloud to my 9 year old daughter in three days, mostly because she kept insisting we read "One more chapter! Just one!" over and over again. While I had the mystery pegged by the middle of the book, she loved trying to puzzle out the clues and really enjoyed the fast-paced plot.
September 25, 2017
Isabel Feeney sells newspapers in 1920s Chicago. Her father was killed in the great war and her mother cleans at a hospital. They do not have much and Isabel helps her mother out financially. She had to leave school, but really wants to be a reporter like her hero Maude Collins. One cold evening, Isabel is the witness to a murder. Miss Giddings, one of her regular customers, and her mobster boyfriend are walking into an alley when the boyfriend is shot. Miss Giddings is quickly arrested for the murder, but Isabel doesn't believe she did it. She teams up with Maude to investigate the murder. Along the way, she makes friends with Giddings' son Robert and the mobsters daughter Flora. Isabel sticks her nose in where it doesn't belong and gets in trouble quite often, but she does find out who really killed the mobster.
Isabel is a plucky girl heroine that was fun to read about. She is poor, but has a lot of pride and ambition. She tells it like it is and doesn't always do or say the right things. I really liked her interactions with quiet, polio-stricken Robert and uppity actress Flora. The three were unlikely friends but that friendship worked. I do think the book was a tad bit long and became a bit predictable after a while. Otherwise it was an enjoyable murder mystery set in Prohibition era Chicago. You get a bit of history and a bit of mystery and a lot of fun.
Isabel is a plucky girl heroine that was fun to read about. She is poor, but has a lot of pride and ambition. She tells it like it is and doesn't always do or say the right things. I really liked her interactions with quiet, polio-stricken Robert and uppity actress Flora. The three were unlikely friends but that friendship worked. I do think the book was a tad bit long and became a bit predictable after a while. Otherwise it was an enjoyable murder mystery set in Prohibition era Chicago. You get a bit of history and a bit of mystery and a lot of fun.
June 1, 2023
Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter by Beth Fantaskey. I'm going to start off this post by saying that I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book! This book will quickly become one of your favorites if you are a fan of mysteries! It wasn't terribly fast-paced, but something about it pulled me in so much that I couldn't put it down! Summary; Isabel Feeney, a newsgirl working in Chicago in the 1920s, dreams of becoming a famous reporter like Maude Collier. When Isabel just happens to be at the scene of a murder on her street, she has her mind set on finding out who the murderer is and proving herself to Maude. But who murdered the mobster Charles "The Bull" Bessemer? His stunningly gorgeous fiancée, Miss Giddings, whose fingerprints match those on the gun? The infamous Al Capone? Bessemer's fiancée’s envious husband? Join Isabel, Flora, Bessemer's daughter, and Robert, Miss Giddings's son to find out whodunit in this captivating mystery! This book was on my TBR for a loooong while, but I finally got around to it and I'm so happy! I was really excited to read this one and it did not disappoint! I highly recommend this book!
Follow @bronteandwilder on Instagram for more fun book recommendations!
Follow @bronteandwilder on Instagram for more fun book recommendations!
August 28, 2019
Isabel Feeney, ten-year-old newsgirl, dreams about becoming a writer like her hero, Maude Collier. When a murder occurs in the alley right next to her newsstand and her favorite customer, Miss Giddings, is a prime suspect, Isabel feels compelled to prove her innocence. Befriended by Maude Collier, the only female crime reporter at the Chicago Tribune, Isabel launches her own secret investigation. The more clues she uncovers, the more danger she faces as she inadvertently steps into the mobster scene of the 1920s. This mystery is a page-turner with plenty of clues to keep readers engaged. With its Historical Note at the end on female crime reporters from the 1920s, this mystery would be an interesting addition for Women’s History Month bookshelves in schools and libraries.
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June 4, 2017(Goodreads blurb)
It’s 1920s Chicago—the guns-and-gangster era of Al Capone—and it’s unusual for a girl to be selling the Tribune on the street corner. But ten-year-old Isabel Feeney is unusual . . . unusually obsessed with being a news reporter. She can’t believe her luck when she stumbles not only into a real-live murder scene, but also into her hero, the famous journalist Maude Collier. The story of how the smart, curious, loyal Isabel fights to defend the honor of her accused friend and latches on to the murder case like a dog on a pant leg makes for a winning, thoroughly entertaining middle grade mystery.
It’s 1920s Chicago—the guns-and-gangster era of Al Capone—and it’s unusual for a girl to be selling the Tribune on the street corner. But ten-year-old Isabel Feeney is unusual . . . unusually obsessed with being a news reporter. She can’t believe her luck when she stumbles not only into a real-live murder scene, but also into her hero, the famous journalist Maude Collier. The story of how the smart, curious, loyal Isabel fights to defend the honor of her accused friend and latches on to the murder case like a dog on a pant leg makes for a winning, thoroughly entertaining middle grade mystery.
July 8, 2024
An entertaining read!
This story is so entertaining and fun! I thoroughly enjoyed following young Isabel as she makes new friends (she hadn’t any, poor thing!), solves the murder one of said friends is accused of, and has many adventures along the way. ‘Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter’ is truly a breath of fresh air in the YA genre. It’s suitable for all ages really including not-so-young-anymore adults! Maude would say I’m using too many exclamation points but I think this book deserves them! : ) I hope Beth brings us more from Isabel…I’m not ready for her adventures to be over yet!
This story is so entertaining and fun! I thoroughly enjoyed following young Isabel as she makes new friends (she hadn’t any, poor thing!), solves the murder one of said friends is accused of, and has many adventures along the way. ‘Isabel Feeney, Star Reporter’ is truly a breath of fresh air in the YA genre. It’s suitable for all ages really including not-so-young-anymore adults! Maude would say I’m using too many exclamation points but I think this book deserves them! : ) I hope Beth brings us more from Isabel…I’m not ready for her adventures to be over yet!
July 25, 2017
Mystery, suspense, friendship, family, history, and writing inspiration all woven into a tidy story.
The adult characters were almost believable, and the plot was a tad predictable (Isabel - the smell, the gum, the uncle!!!) but still a very good read. Readers will hardly notice they are learning about Prohibition and Chicago crime. A great 'next read' would be "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko.
All youngsters need an adult who believes in them. Just remember to write your OWN story in your OWN style.
The adult characters were almost believable, and the plot was a tad predictable (Isabel - the smell, the gum, the uncle!!!) but still a very good read. Readers will hardly notice they are learning about Prohibition and Chicago crime. A great 'next read' would be "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko.
All youngsters need an adult who believes in them. Just remember to write your OWN story in your OWN style.
January 3, 2018
Isabel Feeney is a normal girl who sells news papers,and dreams of becoming a news reporter. Until, she stumbles not only into a real-live murder scene, then her dreams of becoming a reporter are so much closer to becoming reality. It's the 1920's and she lives I downtown Chicago, murders are normal in her eyes.
I rated this book at 3 stars because in the first 100 pages it kept your attention but near the end the book began to slow down. I would recommend this book to mystery and historical fiction readers. Overall, Isabel Feeney: Star Reporter was a good read.
I rated this book at 3 stars because in the first 100 pages it kept your attention but near the end the book began to slow down. I would recommend this book to mystery and historical fiction readers. Overall, Isabel Feeney: Star Reporter was a good read.
October 6, 2018
Looking for book recommendations to make to third graders to a mystery genre study. Would absolutely recommend this book to strong readers in that grade. Isabel Feeney is a hardworking newsie with dreams of being a reporter for the newspaper she hawks on the streetcorner. After nearly witnessing a murder, she works hard to discover the perpetrator in order to save a friend from being falsely accused. Thoroughly enjoyed this and read it from cover to cover in almost a day. Plan to add to collection.
November 7, 2018
A delightful fun novel for middle graders, featuring a smart, brave, and determined Isabel Sweeney. Many layers fold in: detective story, poverty, 1920's in violent Chicago, women's roles, and friendship. I liked Isabel Sweeney so much and rooted for her all the way. I liked how there were both helpful and difficult adults around her and young Flora who was both mean and kind. In other words, there were nuances rather than flat character types. Isabel spoke her piece rather than be silent and she was plucky through and through. The kind of book I'd like to write!
November 10, 2017
A 2018-2019 Missouri Mark Twain Readers Award preliminary nominee (grades 4-6).
It is 1920s Chicago. Isabel Feeney sells newspapers on a street corner. When a murder occurs a block away and one of her favorite customers is the prime suspect, Isabel, an aspiring girl reporter, decides to investigate.
This was not very realistic, but cute. I liked the plucky Isabel Feeney. I wished some of the other characters were developed more.
It is 1920s Chicago. Isabel Feeney sells newspapers on a street corner. When a murder occurs a block away and one of her favorite customers is the prime suspect, Isabel, an aspiring girl reporter, decides to investigate.
This was not very realistic, but cute. I liked the plucky Isabel Feeney. I wished some of the other characters were developed more.
March 19, 2018
I picked this book because it was listed on the Banks Street best books 2017 list. When did murder mysteries become acceptable for the middle grades? In the light of recent gun violence in schools this book has no place on school library shelves. I love the 1920s gritty Chicago history and would have liked to read a book that captured history worthy events in which the heroine wanted to report and be a journalist.
March 20, 2018
Isabel is growing up in Chicago during prohibition. She needs to sell newspapers at the corner to help her mother put food on the table, but her heart's desire is to become a news reporter. She finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation - a gangster's murder investigation!
This is a well written, old style mystery for kids. Isabel is plucky and the setting is gritty and feels real. A welcome addition to our library.
This is a well written, old style mystery for kids. Isabel is plucky and the setting is gritty and feels real. A welcome addition to our library.
October 7, 2020
It's 1920 Chicago and Isabel Feeney has dreams of writing in the newspapers but for now she'll have to stick to selling them. She can't believe her luck when one of her favorite customers, Miss Giddings, gets accused of murder. With the help of her favorite reporter and a few friends Isabel works to prove and write about Miss Giddings' innocence.
This book was odd. It just did not vibe with me though I can see the appeal of a 1920s mystery.
This book was odd. It just did not vibe with me though I can see the appeal of a 1920s mystery.
October 14, 2017
I really liked this book! I like how Isabel is so determined to clear Miss Gidding's name, and how she continues to try, even after the adults tell her to stop. The end was interesting because of the massive plot twist. I liked how proud Isabel was, it made her a really funny character, because whenever someone offered her something, she said no even though she probably should've accepted it.
February 6, 2018
God, this needed an editor that wasn't afraid to stop the rampant cliffhanger abuse. A 300-some-page kid's book does not need 98 chapters, half of which are one or two pages long, solely because you want to end on a cliffhanger. This could have been a lot better, with a better emotional punch, without the constant chapter breaks.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews