Excellent Chapter 3!

I’m sorry to be slow to comment on 7th Grade’s terrific Chapter 3 - I’ve been out of town with medical problems, and just got back. I was looking forward to reading the new chapter, and I certainly wasn’t disappointed! I was also delighted to see the great illustrations that 2nd Grade contributed to Chapters 1 & 2. These make a good story even better.

In this chapter you’ve done a great job of weaving an even tighter web of circumstantial evidence around Phil, and you’ve given him more clues that confuse him now, but might just help him solve the mystery in the end. I particularly liked the way Phil wanted to tell his dad everything, but reconsidered when his phone camera accidentally took that photograph and he told himself that he still had clues to follow up, so in another day of sleuthing he might be able to solve the mystery and keep the family name in good shape, and not tell his father until it was all over. You’re doing an especially good job of developing Phil’s character, so that he comes across believably.

I like the way you’re showing how so many of the students believe that Phil is the thief. I love the phrase “After a dinner of mean looks”! What a great job of showing how they’re turning on Phil! Then you’ve effectively contrasted that hostility with the loyalty of Phil’s friends. I’m impressed that Dexter both accepts that Phil will explain later on, and even sneaks out of the tent with him. I do think it’s mysterious that the teachers are so blatantly suspicious of Phil and only Phil - or are they looking at other students suspiciously also, and Phil just hasn’t noticed that? I wonder how the adult chaperones feel about the missing Palm Pilots and Phil’s supposed guilt? Have Molli’s parents voiced their opinions?

I liked the variety of the clues you’ve come up with, from changes in the condition of the lockbox that Phil observes, to the receipt that falls out of Mr. Troth’s pocket, to the conversation Phil overhears between Missy and Anne, to the accidental picture in all its fuzziness, to the suspicious voices outside and Megan’s hair tie. And you end on a great cliffhanger, with Phil and Dexter caught outside after dark by Mr. Troth. How interesting that he keeps looking so suspicious. And that dog definitely complicates Phil’s attempts to puzzle out the mystery. You’ve also set up another good question in whether or not Phil’s being set up. I wonder where the story will go from here? I know December is a short month because of winter break, but I’m excited to see what’s going to happen in Chapter 4!