SuitabookSammy Keyes and the hotel thief
Wendelin Van Draanen
- Reading
- Read together if useful, pausing to let your child predict what Sammy might do next. Check in after the robbery premise and return to the family strand at your child’s pace.
- Themes
- Being believed: Sammy tells an officer about the robbery, but he does not believe her; she resolves to prove what she saw. This situation can prompt discussion of how adults respond when a young person reports something they witnessed.
- Home and family: Sammy lives secretly with her grandmother while her mother pursues stardom; the story is also described as engaging with family and belonging. The arrangement may invite reflection on what makes a home feel like home, without assuming how Sammy feels about it.
- Worth knowing
- The premise includes a hotel robbery and the thief noticing Sammy; a teaching companion also flags mild suspense and some danger. Sammy’s family situation may bring gentle stress.