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During spring break of sixth grade, Rami feels isolated and unseen: his once-close friends have rejected him, and he wonders more and more about the father who abandoned him when he was two. Meanwhile, his mother's workplace, an art museum, has been rocked by the sudden, unexplained theft of a painting. Determined to solve the mystery and prove his worth, Rami finds himself face-to-face with what seems to be the ghost of a young girl who has forgotten her own identity. With the help of new friend Veda, Rami must make sense of the missing painting, the nameless girl, and his own feelings of loss. Warga's spare prose, sweet characters, and gentle narration offer early middle-graders an accessible, even poetic read, and while the mystery component is somewhat straightforward, this is a story concerned less with thrills and more with a sense of wonder. The budding relationship between reserved Rami and upbeat Veda is a highlight, nicely illustrating the power of affirming friendship in an uncertain period of life. A treat for bighearted, bookish sleuths.

Publishers Weekly
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Sixth grader Rami Ahmed is having a terrible time. His best friends dropped him for no apparent reason, and now someone has stolen a painting from the Penelope L. Brooks Museum, where his mother works. It’s bad enough that security is suspicious of him, but his mother, who leads the cleaning staff, is considered a suspect, too. Since his father left before he was two, his mother is all Rami has. To make matters worse, he’s now hearing and seeing a girl floating in the museum—and she looks like the girl in the missing painting. She soon approaches Rami: she doesn’t know who she is and wants his help to figure it out. With assistance from his crime-podcast-obsessed new friend Veda and an artistically inclined turtle called Agatha, Rami determines to find the painting thief and clear his and his mother’s names. Though the resolution feels thin, the meticulously fleshed-out museum backdrop evokes impeccable ambiance for a mystery in this cozy tale. Grayscale illustrations by Rockefeller, who collaborated with Warga on A Rover’s Story, depict the museum and cast through vivid portraiture. Rami’s parents are from Lebanon and Veda’s are from India. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Brenda Bowen, Book Group. (Sept.)