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Sammy Keyes and the Hollywood Mummy
Written by Wendelin Van Draanen
· Knopf Books for Young Readers
· Hardcover · Ages 10-13
· February 13, 2001 · $15.95 · 978-0-375-80266-9 (0-375-80266-5)
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The elusive Lady Lana (a.k.a. Sammy’s mom) ran off to Hollywood nearly a year ago to get “discovered.” But when Sammy discovers that her mom has changed her name, dyed her hair, and told everyone she’s only 25, she decides Lana needs a little reality check. I mean, it’s one thing to have her mom ditch her. But it’s another to find out she’s created a life for herself where Sammy can’t possibly exist.
But Hollywood is a shock. Everyone is pretending here. No one is who or what they seem in this starlet-eat-starlet world. So when a woman is killed in the room next door, Sammy’s hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t have a motive . . . including her own mom.
Books have always been a part of Wendelin Van Draanen’s life. Her mother taught her to read at an early age, and she has fond memories of story time with her father, when she and her brothers would cuddle up around him and listen to him read stories.
Growing up, Van Draanen was a tomboy who loved to be outside chasing down adventure. She did not decide that she wanted to be an author until she was an adult. When she tried her hand at writing a screenplay about a family tragedy, she found the process quite cathartic and from that experience, turned to writing novels for adults. She soon stumbled upon the joys of writing for children.
Feedback from her readers is Van Draanen’s greatest reward for writing. “One girl came up to me and told me I changed her life. It doesn’t get any better than that,” she said. Van Draanen hopes to leave her readers with a sense that they have the ability to steer their own destiny—that individuality is a strength, and that where there’s a will, there’s most certainly a way.
Wendelin Van Draanen is the winner of the 1999 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Children’s Mystery Book for Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief and lives with her husband and two sons in California.
Visit the Sammy Keyes web site
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