Emil and the Detectives (7y, 4y 9m)

General Vibe:

Emil and the Detectives was written by Erich Kastner and published in 1929 in Germany.  This was his first book published and the beginning of a long career as a children's author.  As I read this story, I immediately felt like I was transported to a Germany of another time and age.  Emil lives in a small town and takes a train all by himself to visit his grandmother for a week who lives in Berlin.  He travels in a trolley pulled by a horse through his small town.  He travels in a train in a compartment that he shares with strangers (a woman passenger is described taking off her shoes and stretching out her toes).  A man brags to him that in Berlin you only have to go to a post office and you can be shot through pneumatic tubes to any district in the country.  All these details were transporting for me and interesting at least to my 7 year old.  He wanted to know what a trolley was, for example.

Plot and Characters:

I think the plot is fairly compelling to young children.  Emil is taking seven "pounds" to his grandmother (so my translation must be by an English translator, I suppose) and he puts it in an envelope and pins it into his pocket.  He drifts off to sleep on the train and when he awakes the money is gone.  He realizes who took the money and sees the man slipping off the train at a station before the one he is supposed to meet his grandmother at, and he follows him.  He is alone in Berlin without any money at all, trying to catch a thief that he can't prove to anyone actually stole his money in the first place.  He meets a gang of boys who decide to help him.  They all have interesting names and personalities.  There is Pony his cousin, the Professor, Tuesday, and others who help Emil catch the thief.  The story is a slow build, really.  The children don't seem to have a plan at all for most of the book, but it's very satisfactory when they finally catch him.  The chapters were a little too long for my almost 5 year old who often would go lie down (and immediately sleep) half way through the chapter.

Future Recommendations:

I would absolutely read more of Kastner's books, such as The Flying Classroom or Lottie and Lisa.  The Disney film, "The Parent Trap," is based off of Lottie and Lisa, and they even produced a film of Emil and the Detectives with the same name but with significant changes to the story and cast of characters.  However, both the book and the film have a classic charm to them.