‘Just because the world was simple, it didn’t mean there wasn’t any room for the occasional mystery.’ (p.311)
These are teenagers with a mystery to solve and they won’t give up until they get to the bottom of it, even if they have to stay back at the taxidermy lab until midnight looking for clues. Does this sound like the type of book you love to read, the type of book that you can’t put down and you have to keep reading? Then ‘A Pocketful Of Eyes’ by Lili Wilkinson is the book for you!
It all starts when a teenage girl named Bee is working at a taxidermy laboratory in the Melbourne Natural Museum’s Department, ‘but her summer job turns out to be full of surprises’ (back cover), especially on the day her mentor suddenly dies and a mysterious handsome boy named Toby begins to work at the taxidermy lab with Bee. Everyone thought that Bee’s mentor Gus died because he committed suicide but Bee and Toby are on a quest to find out if Gus really committed suicide, or did someone murder him?
I really liked the book, ‘A Pocketful Of Eyes’ because it is a story about a girl and boy who begin to have feelings for each other and they are on a quest to find out who murdered their mentor, Gus, and during the process of getting clues and investigating they have some fights but the story concludes with them making up.
Bee is very quirky yet mysterious in a way. When Bee was young she always liked reading detective books and always liked to be a detective. Bee’s co-worker Toby was a good-looking boy who is in university. He knew a lot about animal history and was always trying to charm Bee with quirky and strange facts.
I particularly enjoyed this book because each page you found out something new, either about the characters or the investigation. I was glued to the book. When I was reading ‘A Pocketful Of Eyes’, each page felt like you were getting closer and closer to finding out how Gus died. I strongly recommend this book to teenagers and young adults from the ages of 13- 18 who are preferably girls who are interested in a good mystery and romance. I rate this book 4 stars out of 5.
~ Kate, Year 9
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Bee is part time working in a taxidermy department at her local museum. School starts up again in a few weeks and she is preparing for her last year of school. Her mother is a complete geek and her so-called boyfriend is nowhere to be seen or heard of.
It was a normal day for Bee when she entered the taxidermy department, until she saw police officers and investigators around the place. The head of the Taxidermy Department, Gus, died that night. The investigators say that he killed himself but Bee thinks differently. Will Bee find out who really killed Gus or is she just imagining her childhood fantasy of becoming a detective?
The main characters are interesting: Bee is a girl working in the Taxidermy Department as a part time job before school; Toby is a boy who randomly appeared one day without a word. He said that he needed extra credit as he failed an exam in university, but the problem was that he is very mysterious but knows many animal mating habits. Gus seemed like a very peaceful man that knew what he was doing, but Bee knew something was different the day he died.
This book is exciting, unique and it puts you on the edge. The story line was interesting as there are many detective books where you can guess the ending but this book was different. As soon as I picked up ‘A Pocketful of Eyes’ I couldn’t put I down, and when I did put it down I could not stop thinking about the book. I would recommend the book to girls between the ages of thirteen and fifteen. This is truly a wonderful book that puts you on edge. 4 out of 5 stars.
Morgan B, Year 9
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‘Just because the world was simple, it didn’t mean there wasn’t any room for the occasional mystery.’ (p. 311)
It was a normal day for Bee; well that’s what she thought, anyway. Bee is a senior high school student working at the Museum of Natural History in the Taxidermy Department for a summer job. This normal day suddenly was filled of surprises, including Bee’s mentor being found dead and a handsome boy showing up. Bee had many questions but was too shocked to say, after working with Gus, her mentor at the Museum, since the beginning of the summer break. Bee found it odd that the police would say that he had committed suicide and from that moment forward, Bee was convinced that he was murdered. Bee has some help from what she calls her sidekick Toby, the handsome boy. Together they try and solve what they believed was murder.
I truly enjoyed the book, “A Pocketful of Eyes” because it is a story about a girl who has grown up enjoying mystery books and thought she would never be involved in one herself, but during her summer her small dream comes true.
The way Lili Wilkinson described the scenes and characters was wonderful; I didn’t want to put the book down. Her descriptive language really made it easier to imagine actually being there. The story had many twists to keep me on my feet and it had my full attention, as I just wanted to keep reading to find out what was going happen next. The ending of the book was very pleasing because all of the small clues had suddenly came together like a jigsaw to revealed the amazing ending to the mystery. After reading “A Pocketful of Eyes” I truly hope that Lili Wilkinson will be writing a second book.
I would recommend this book to teenagers between the age of 13 and 17 who enjoy reading about mystery and romance. This book is a delightful read. I’d rate the book “A Pocketful of Eyes” by Lili Wilkinson 4 out of 5 stars.
Caitlin, Year 9.
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“The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes.”
(Arthur Conan Doyle, The Hound of the Baskervilles)
Bee thought it was just an average day at her summer job in the Taxidermy Department at the Museum of Natural History, but she soon finds out that it wasn’t. Her mentor Gus was found dead in the Red Rotunda. Bee also had made a new friend called Toby, who quite frankly turned out to be very handsome but much older then her.
Bee didn’t believe that Gus committed suicide; she thought that he had been murdered. Bee and Toby go on a quest to try and figure out what happened the night Gus was found dead. They decide to make a list of suspects and start questioning each of them. Not everything goes to plan, whilst questioning the suspects. They then discover more clues that could answer the main question as to whether Gus was murdered or if he committed suicide?
I really enjoyed the book ‘A Pocketful of Eyes’ because it is a story about a girl and a boy who solve a mystery together to come to the conclusion as to whether their mentor was murdered or committed suicide.
I was totally engaged in the book and could not put it down, as I was curious as to what would happen next. The descriptive and captivating language made it simple for me to picture the characters, scenes and also what they might have been thinking. The book was full of surprises and always kept my full attention. I recommend this book to teenagers of the ages of 13-16, who are interested in mystery novels and also a bit of romance. I rate this book 4 stars out of 5.
Georgia S, Year 9