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Rossell, Judith

The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls

320 pp. | Dial | May, 2025 | Trade ISBN 9798217002405 $18.99 | Ebook ISBN 9798217002412 $10.99
(1) 4-6 Oppressed orphans, a boarding school, a 1920s setting, a determined heroine, and an exuberant mystery plot -- we think we've seen it all before, but this entertaining romp has some surprises in store. The orphan school, far from being grim, is a utopian institution specializing in delicious food and a jolly and useful curriculum including safe-cracking, knot-tying, automotive repair, and the use of explosives. The whole enterprise is a secret front for training junior crime-fighters and spies, and the plot involves such disparate exploits as solving a mystery of stolen jewels, rescuing a kidnapped librarian, and capturing a monster. The text is jokey, dotted with inventive names and German translation exercises worthy of Edward Gorey ("there is a small fire inside your accordion"). The stunning realistic pencil illustrations play it mostly straight, though with the addition of steampunk-esque airships. Beautifully composed and precise, they celebrate light, shadow, and texture and provide a scaffolding of gravitas to the whole enterprise, while encouraging the reader to slow down and savor a vignette of a friendly pet rat or a double-page spread of a grand cityscape shining with rain. This Australian import is a pleasure on many fronts.
Reviewer: Sarah Ellis | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2025

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