Mystery - Fish Finelli: Seagulls don’t eat pickles by E.S. Farber, Jason Beene (Illustrator).

Module 9: Fish Finelli: Seagulls don’t eat pickles by E.S. Farber, Jason Beene (Illustrator).

Summary:  Fish Finelli and his friends are trying to save money to buy a motor for their boat in hopes of winning the Captain Kidd Classic annual boat race. They have heard of Captain Kidd’s treasure that no one has found.  They heard rumors that it may be on Lyon’s island. The developer’s son, Bryce, places a bet that he’ll find the treasure before they do.   Fish and his friends also discover that the director of the Whooping Hollow Library, Mr. E. Mann is also looking for the treasure map., Fish and his two friends are determined to find the treasure before Bryce and Mr. E. Mann do.  If they can find the treasure, it means reward money, but it may also save Lyon’s island from developers since it has nature reserve for the endangered Osprey.

My Perspective: Fish Finelli and his two friends go on a real treasure hunt.  The main characters, Fish is a plumber’s son and his friends Roger and T.J. Both Fish and Roger have younger sisters the same age.  Roger loves torturing his older sister, and T.J. is always hungry.  He eats candy all the time, and the fireballs he eats later inspire the name of the boat that they will race in the Captain Kidd Classic annual boat race, The Fireball. There are other characters that fill the story, but do not add much to the plot.  One exception, is Uncle Norman’s girlfriend who was an astrologer and had a vision of the map in the box.   This information aligns with the news T.J. had when he was eavesdropping on the library director who was meeting with a mystery woman.  Bryce was a stereotypical bully, always there to pick on the younger boys.  He bets the boys that they cannot find the treasure before he does.  He loses the bet and has to give Fish, his trademark mirrored sunglasses. The plot to find the map moves slowly as the author develops the different characters.  There are mini lessons within the story that give background information on Caption Lyons adventures, Marco Polo, Nicola Tesla, the microwave, etc.  They are very pedantic in nature and do not keep the story moving forward. In fact, it was distracting to the plot.  This book must be written for very young readers, perhaps 2nd-4th grade in that way it tries to explain these facts.  Fish Finelli is a young sleuth series, but book one does not impress me to read further.
However, the Kirkus Reviews rates the book more highly stating that the “dialogue is contemporary, and the chapter headings add clever flair: “The Librarian’s Got the Booty?!” The review welcomes this new series, as a great boys’ counterpart to such stellar girls’ series as Ivy + Bean. It is categorized as a Mystery for ages 8-12 years old. 
Library Application: Students can use problem solving skills in trying to find a hidden treasure.  The librarian can create a mystery, complete with a hidden map.  The students will need to find the map and ultimately, the hidden treasure.  This can occur over a period of time as opposed to a single lesson.

References:
Farber, E. S., (2013).  Fish Finelli: Seagulls don’t eat pickles. San Fransisco: Chronicle Books. 
Kirkus Review. (2013, February, 13). [Book review of Seagulls don’t eat pickles.]. Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/es-farber/seagulls-dont-eat-pickles/

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