Mystery and Mayhem

If you visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, Massachusetts, you might be surprised to see frames without any paintings in them. This isn’t a mistake—museum officials hope to someday return the artwork that was stolen from the museum to these frames. In the early morning hours after St. Patrick’s Day in 1990, a guard at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Art Museum was tricked into allowing a pair of thieves disguised as police officers to enter the building. The thieves used duct tape to secure the two guards on duty in the basement while they stole 13 pieces of art. The art, and the thieves, have never been recovered.

The famous tale of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum art heist, the first of five stories in Daring Heists: Real Tales of Sensational Robberies and Robbers, introduces readers to the mystery and suspense of interesting crimes. Other topics discussed in the book include the stories of famous robbers D.B. Cooper and Marm Mandelbaum, the Great Train Robbery of 1963, and the Christmas Eve art theft at the Mexico City Museum in 1985.

Daring Heists is the third book in a new series called Mystery & Mayhem, which features true tales that whet kids’ appetites for history by engaging them in genres with proven track records—mystery and adventure. History is made of near misses, unexplained disappearances, unsolved mysteries, and bizarre events that are almost too weird to be true—almost! The Mystery & Mayhem series delves into these tidbits of history to provide kids with a jumping off point into a lifelong habit of appreciating history.

Each of the five true tales told within Daring Heists is paired with a map, as well as fun facts about the setting, industry, and time period. A glossary and resources page provide the opportunity to practice using essential academic tools. These nonfiction narratives use clear, concise language with compelling plots that both avid and reluctant readers will be drawn to.