A MG debut by GM perfect for fans of James Ponti and Stuart Gibbs.
🫧
Maya Mendoza is a gifted (bubble)gumshoe—just ask her and she’ll tell you. Too bad no one else appreciates her talents. When her ex-best friend, Jordan, gets detention with Maya and a few other girls, they try to break into the infamous Contraband Closet on campus, only to find out it’s already been cleaned out! Maya makes a deal with the principal that she can solve the mystery and get the girls and herself out of trouble. The case is on!
🫧
Fans of film noir detective movies will enjoy Moldavsky’s foray into the middle grade detective mystery world. I found Maya to be a strong, capable and very smart female and can’t wait for this series to continue! We need more powerful FMCs in middle grade books.

CW: theft

Maya is a middle schooler who loves investigating and solving mysteries. She finds herself drawn into a mystery when she breaks into the Contraband Closet (along with three other girls in detention - Ava, Clementine, and her former best friend Jordan) but finds it's empty. Determined to try to help her former bestie Jordan recover what she lost, Maya sets out to find the culprit.

This was a cute first book in what seems like it might be a series! Maya definitely goes on a growth journey because she is definitely clueless about social interactions early on. I love that Madge ended up being the adult she learned most from and that that relationship was able to grow. This seems like the start of a fun mystery middle grade series.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

With her keen observation skills, seventh grader Maya is a self-appointed detective, ready to solve any mysteries that she encounters, even after one such mission cost Maya her friendship with her BFF. When the items stashed in the school’s Contraband Closet are stolen, Maya is on the case along with three classmates—prodigy Ava, rich girl Clementine, and Maya’s former BFF Jordan. Maya hopes that working the case with Jordan will mend their friendship and reunite the school’s students with their confiscated items. Using each of the team’s unique skills, the girls navigate twists and turns to find the contents of the closet.

This is an entertaining story with humor, a lively pace, and a core group of characters who grow and change over the course of the story. Adding the element of friendship drama to a mystery brings depth and dimension to the story and weaves in the social challenges that come along with navigating middle school in a natural and engaging way. I’m looking forward to seeing the Bubblegum Shoes team in action again in future books!

Bubblegum Shoes is the second book I’ve read by Goldy Moldavsky and my second five-star read by her, I LOVED IT! I cannot wait to reread this one with my kids, who are the perfect age for Middle Grade books.

I love a good mystery book and this one definitely delivers. I was guessing about the culprit and failing to solve the mystery throughout the novel and having an absolute blast while doing so. I was delightfully surprised by how hilarious Moldavsky’s writing is! While reading, I had to repeatedly resist the urge to read passages out loud to my kids, because I didn’t want to spoil the fun for them when they read it. I also loved the characters. School can be difficult for kids to navigate socially and Maya’s challenges will be relatable for many kids. I think kids will feel seen my this novel and feel less alone.

I highly recommend Bubblegum Shoes for Middle Grade readers looking for an uproariously funny, entertaining and heartfelt mystery read.

Despite having several of her books on my TBR, this is my first read of author Goldy Moldavsky — now I’m eager to read more! This is her first book in the middle-grade genre and, as a middle school librarian, my professional opinion is that she hit the mark. Some of the characters come off a bit innocent compared to what I see on a daily basis, but middle school is a weird juxtaposition of innocence and growing up too fast so it was refreshing to have 7th graders who weren’t trying to act like high schoolers. Middle grade readers will find the MC relatable yet not necessarily likable even though her heart is in the right place, but she gets there in the end, leading to a solid teachable moment for the intended audience. Readers will also appreciate that each character feels unique and contributes to the plot in their own way, helping lead the MC to the moral of the story and to a satisfying HEA conclusion. Adults are either evil, obtuse, or absent with one notable exception, but that’s just one more layer said audience will probably feel like they can relate to. The humor was really cute, the story kept my interest, and the character growth throughout was pleasantly unexpected. Looking forward to the next in the series, and I will definitely be adding this to my middle school library collection.

**Thank you, NetGalley and publishers, for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.**

Seventh grader Maya Mendoza is a self-declared detective in Hillside, New Jersey. When the school’s Contraband Closet is mysteriously emptied, Maya vows to crack the case. She tracks suspects and possible locations of the loot with the help of other kids sent to detention by Principal Spade: Ava Agarwal, Clementine Steffin-Paller, and Jordan Freeman. Jordan is Maya’s ex-bestie, and she hopes their shared investigation will mend their broken friendship. Will it? As she helps to uncover crooked kids and compromised adults, Maya is navigating a first crush, the ups and downs of tween social interactions, and the changes brought about by divorce. Maya and her crew take on an illegal card ring, nab a vandal, and get into (and out of) plenty of scrapes. Maya and her crew decides to make a name for their group. It’s decided it will be called Bubblegum Shoes. Each member of their new club, the Bubblegum Shoes, brings a distinct skill set for future adventures.

YA author Moldavsky takes on organized crime at Marlowe Middle School in her middle-grade debut, a mystery series opener. It’s a novel of humor, mystery and friendship. I enjoyed reading Maya’s detective work and getting her crew to go along with decisions she makes to find the person who emptied the Contraband Closet of its content. I look forward to reading the next book.

This title (and the name of the club that goes with it) is well suited and clever. The Dear Reader note set the tone perfectly and the book did exactly as Goldy Moldavsky set out to do! This was a fun middle school based mystery. I enjoyed the characters immensely! 4th-7th graders especially are going to love this book.

Thank you Random House BFYR @randomhouse Random House Children’s Books @randomhousekids and Goldy Moldavsky @goldywrites for this free book!
“Bubblegum Shoes: The Case of the Contraband Closet” by Goldy Moldavsky⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: MG Fiction, ages 8-12. Location: Hillside, New Jersey, USA. Time: Seventh Grade.

Maya Mendoza is a 7th grader at Marlowe Middle School. She’s a self-appointed PI (private eye) who loves classic noir detectives, and never stops paying attention. She sees the note-passers, the teachers with too-tight shoes, and she notices when best friend Jordan stops talking to her. In detention again, Maya discovers “fellow inmates” Jordan, Clementine, and Ava all had something confiscated and put in the legendary Contraband Closet. They break into the Contraband Closet and find all confiscated items are missing. School principal Mr. Spade gives P.I. Maya one month to find the real thieves or be suspended. Contraband and friendships don't vanish into thin air, right?

Author Moldavsky has written the 1st book in a new mystery series filled with friendship, humor, and mystery. Her wise-cracking main character Maya matures, learns to appreciate friendship, and develops a crush. And Maya adds witty references to noir film settings when describing the investigation. (Moldavsky’s 1st middle grade book was inspired by black-and-white noir movies.) It’s fun, it’s action-packed, and it’s 5 stars from me 📚👩🏼‍🦳#BubblegumShoes #GoldyMoldavsky

New Jersey seventh grader, Maya is a snoop and a detective. An incident of which caused her friendship with her BFF Jordan to get severed. In detention, Maya discovers a link between Jordan, Clementine, Ava, and her: all of them have had items confiscated and put in the contraband closet. When Maya breaks into the closet to help get their items back, they four classmates find the closet empty. The school Principal, Mr. Spade sees them breaking into the closet and thinks they did it. Mr. Spade gives them an ultimatum: find the true perpetrator within a month or face suspension. Will they succeed?

The plot is engaging, entertaining, and mysterious. The characters are memorable, authentic, and bring the story to life. Themes of friendship, first crushes, noir, and family are heartfelt and engaging. Readers who like realistic fiction, mystery, and friendship fiction will want to pick this one up. Recommended for library collections where mysteries are popular. Grades 3 to 7, 4 stars.

E ARC provided by Netgalley

Maya Mendoza loves to solve mysteries, even though it's gotten her in trouble with her former friend Jordan. When Maya asks to go to the restroom during class to check on her friend (and to get a hit of bubblegum), she and Jordan are caught in front of the contraband closet, where the school stores all of the toys, technology, and other distractions that get taken away from children. The principal sentences them to an after school detention, where they meet Ava Agarwal, a ten year old prodigy who runs a Happy Helpers business, as well as Clementine, who has moved to the school from a ritzier neighborhood. Jordan has had the school choir pitch pipe confiscated, and Clementine has lost her cell phone, so the group distracts the monitor and breaks into the closet... only to be caught again. The closet is empty, and unless they can find the culprit, the group will be in detention every day. Maya's parents are divorced, and her father has a girlfriend, Madge, who doesn't appreciate the 1940s detective films as much as her father does, but is a better cook, and her parents' inattentiveness gives her some leeway to investigate the case. Using Ava's Happy Helpers as a front, they give coupons to the suspects so they can sneak into their houses. They start with Johnny Persnicowitz, but find no evidence, and are hired to do someone's diorama for school, to clean bathrooms, and to play cards with someone's grandmother. None of their investigations pan out, although they get some leads to follow. A tagger named Frito seems a likely suspect until he turns out to be a fairly mild mannered (and a little bit cute) classmate named Seth. Suspecting Jordan's friend Kaylee makes checking her out difficult, but Maya spray paints her garage and then sneaks into her house while cleaning it up. Is she the culprit? Maya and her group won't rest until they find out who has stolen 40 years worth of contraband.
Strengths: Maya's love of a mystery causes a lot of tension with Jordan, and that kind of friend drama is definitely typical of middle school. The investigation is well constructed, and lets Maya and her fellow detainees talk to all manner of different students. My favorite part of the book was the father's girlfriend, Madge, who ends up picking Maya up from school one day after she gets in trouble, and is a very reasonable and supportive person. I'm curious to see what the next mystery will be.
Weaknesses: I cannot even imagine the wrath of a parent whose child's cell phone was taken away and not given back the same day! This would never happen at my school. If a student's phone is taken away, a parent is called IMMEDIATELY, and the parent has to pick up the phone. Phones are expensive! Also, if there is 40 years' worth of contraband, why does it get handed back to students at the end of the book after the mystery is solved? And why is the closet in the hallway and not in the office? This was not at all realistic, which made it hard for me to become invested in the story. There is some problematic language as well. I don't think my students use phrases like "take a leak", "other side of the tracks', or "broad" (which is highly offensive!).
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoyed the film noir highjinks in Tidhar's The Candy Mafia, Daneshvari's The League of Unexceptional Children, or Krosoczka's Platypus Police Squad.

The characters are amazing. Lots of simple lessons taught in an easy and entertaining way. Fun story.