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Mandie #37
Mandie and the Night Thief
After staying with the Pattons only a couple of days, Mandie and her friends and family realize jewelry is mysteriously disappearing overnight. So far Mandie is missing a cherished locket; Celia, a silver bracelet; and Mandie's grandmother, some of her own jewelry. If Mandie and her friends investigate the strange noises in the night, will they find the thief? Or is the house haunted like some say it is? When Joe leaves early to go back to college, a sad Mandie is more determined than ever to solve the mystery of the missing jewelry.
157 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 1, 2003
About the author
Lois Gladys Leppard
120 books290 followersLois Gladys Leppard was the author of the Mandie series of children's novels. Leppard wrote her first Mandie story when she was only eleven and a half years old, but did not become a professional author until she was an adult. Leppard has also worked as a professional singer, actress, and playwright. At one time, she and her two sisters, Sybil and Louise, formed a singing group called the Larke Sisters.
There are forty Mandie books in the main series, an eight-book junior series and several other titles. Leppard said that she could write a Mandie book in two weeks, barring any interruptions.
The eponymous heroine lives in North Carolina in the early 1900s, encountering adventure and solving mysteries with help from her friends, family, and pet cat, Snowball. These young reader novels are meant to teach morals as well as be fun and captivating stories to read. Leppard stated that her books contain "nothing occult or vulgar", and Mandie is depicted as a faithful Christian. The Mandie books often deal with issues of discrimination and prejudice relating to race (particularly with regard to the local Cherokee), class, and disability.
Lois Gladys Leppard based some of the incidents in her Mandie books on her mother's experiences growing up in North Carolina. The dedication in the first book is: "For My Mother, Bessie A. Wilson Leppard, and In Memory of Her Sister, Lillie Margaret Ann Wilson Frady, Orphans of North Carolina Who Outgrew the Sufferings of Childhood".
There are forty Mandie books in the main series, an eight-book junior series and several other titles. Leppard said that she could write a Mandie book in two weeks, barring any interruptions.
The eponymous heroine lives in North Carolina in the early 1900s, encountering adventure and solving mysteries with help from her friends, family, and pet cat, Snowball. These young reader novels are meant to teach morals as well as be fun and captivating stories to read. Leppard stated that her books contain "nothing occult or vulgar", and Mandie is depicted as a faithful Christian. The Mandie books often deal with issues of discrimination and prejudice relating to race (particularly with regard to the local Cherokee), class, and disability.
Lois Gladys Leppard based some of the incidents in her Mandie books on her mother's experiences growing up in North Carolina. The dedication in the first book is: "For My Mother, Bessie A. Wilson Leppard, and In Memory of Her Sister, Lillie Margaret Ann Wilson Frady, Orphans of North Carolina Who Outgrew the Sufferings of Childhood".
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 27, 2018
About this book:
“A visit to their friend Tommy Patton’s home in Charleston finds Mandie and the others in the midst of another mystery. Strange noises from the third floor have convinced some of the servants that the house is haunted. Then Mandie’s jewelry starts to disappear. Who—or what—is in the house?”
Series: Book #37 in “Mandie” series. (To read the reviews of the previous books in this series, click the number to be taken to that review: #1! #2! #3! #4! #5! #6! #7! #8! #9! #10! #11! #12! #13! #14! #15! #16! #17! #18! #19! #20! #21! #22! #23! #24! #25! #26! #27! #28! #29! #30! #31! #32! #33! #34! #35! And #36!) {There also is the “Young Mandie Mystery” series, (Book #1 review Here and Book #2 review Here!) but they do not connect together well.}
Spiritual Content- Mathew 6:12 at the beginning; A few Scriptures are quoted, mentioned, prayed, & talked about; Mentions of God & the Bible; Mentions of churches & church going;
*Note: Mentions of ghosts & spirits.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: six ‘shucks’s; Mentions of a thief/thieves, stealing, & stolen items; A few mentions of a (previous) tornado; A couple mentions of lies & lying.
Sexual Content- A couple mentions of Mandie & Joe (possibly) marrying when they’re older; A couple mentions of crushes.
-Amanda “Mandie” Shaw, age 15
P.O.V. switches between them
Set in 1903
157 pages (also available in a collection with two other Mandie books.)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- Three Stars (and a half)
New Teens- Four Stars
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Three Stars
My personal Rating- Three Stars
It’s hard to believe that we’re getting closer and closer to the end of this series! The mystery is wrapped up very quick in this one, but it’s still a fun read. :)
Link to review:
https://booksforchristiangirls.blogsp...
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
“A visit to their friend Tommy Patton’s home in Charleston finds Mandie and the others in the midst of another mystery. Strange noises from the third floor have convinced some of the servants that the house is haunted. Then Mandie’s jewelry starts to disappear. Who—or what—is in the house?”
Series: Book #37 in “Mandie” series. (To read the reviews of the previous books in this series, click the number to be taken to that review: #1! #2! #3! #4! #5! #6! #7! #8! #9! #10! #11! #12! #13! #14! #15! #16! #17! #18! #19! #20! #21! #22! #23! #24! #25! #26! #27! #28! #29! #30! #31! #32! #33! #34! #35! And #36!) {There also is the “Young Mandie Mystery” series, (Book #1 review Here and Book #2 review Here!) but they do not connect together well.}
Spiritual Content- Mathew 6:12 at the beginning; A few Scriptures are quoted, mentioned, prayed, & talked about; Mentions of God & the Bible; Mentions of churches & church going;
*Note: Mentions of ghosts & spirits.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: six ‘shucks’s; Mentions of a thief/thieves, stealing, & stolen items; A few mentions of a (previous) tornado; A couple mentions of lies & lying.
Sexual Content- A couple mentions of Mandie & Joe (possibly) marrying when they’re older; A couple mentions of crushes.
-Amanda “Mandie” Shaw, age 15
P.O.V. switches between them
Set in 1903
157 pages (also available in a collection with two other Mandie books.)
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- Three Stars (and a half)
New Teens- Four Stars
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Three Stars
My personal Rating- Three Stars
It’s hard to believe that we’re getting closer and closer to the end of this series! The mystery is wrapped up very quick in this one, but it’s still a fun read. :)
Link to review:
https://booksforchristiangirls.blogsp...
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
June 23, 2024
Proceed with caution, keep all the typical Mandie book disclaimers in mind when reading.
Early in the book, the dialogue was much better than previous books. I noted that the kids speak more naturally and the way you expect children to, even if the content of their speech is boring and repetitive. All Mandie books start with 1 to 2 chapters of characters recapping other books.
Unfortunately, that's about the best I have to say. In the first half of the way through the book, we get a scene in which all the rich kids talk about strange rules their parents have for their extra rooms in the enormous houses they occupy. Then Joe sadly chimes in at the end that his much smaller house doesn't have such rules because his family needs to use every room all the time. Why are the kids being so mean and careless about this? Why is Leppard writing about it?
At the end of chapter 5, Leppard gets some jabs at adopted kids in. Apparently, adopted kids are poorly behaved and unlikable because they're adopted. Wtf.
In chapter 6, Tommy and Mandie shame the poors for using credit to live in larger houses. "Why would someone want to live in place they can't *really* afford?" Mandie asks. I dunno, probably because being poor fucking blows, Mandie. You were poor in the first book, you'd think you would have a little empathy for the impoverished. Tommy says these people just want to appear rich, essentially calling poor people posers. It's gross.
I guessed pretty early that the ending would include Josephine assisting the travelers in stealing from the Patton's guests. I was only half right, and unfortunately I was only right about the more racist part of this plot line. Always dissappointed to see the least favorable and most boring option being the ending we get from Leppard. I'll give her props for having a monkey show up guess. Didn't have monkey thieves on my list of possible solutions in this book.
Leppard also left some loose ends here, though. We never got an explanation how Josephine made it back from the beach on her own. We never found out why she was hiding from the rest of the kids.
What a weird book, dude. 3 more to go...
Early in the book, the dialogue was much better than previous books. I noted that the kids speak more naturally and the way you expect children to, even if the content of their speech is boring and repetitive. All Mandie books start with 1 to 2 chapters of characters recapping other books.
Unfortunately, that's about the best I have to say. In the first half of the way through the book, we get a scene in which all the rich kids talk about strange rules their parents have for their extra rooms in the enormous houses they occupy. Then Joe sadly chimes in at the end that his much smaller house doesn't have such rules because his family needs to use every room all the time. Why are the kids being so mean and careless about this? Why is Leppard writing about it?
At the end of chapter 5, Leppard gets some jabs at adopted kids in. Apparently, adopted kids are poorly behaved and unlikable because they're adopted. Wtf.
In chapter 6, Tommy and Mandie shame the poors for using credit to live in larger houses. "Why would someone want to live in place they can't *really* afford?" Mandie asks. I dunno, probably because being poor fucking blows, Mandie. You were poor in the first book, you'd think you would have a little empathy for the impoverished. Tommy says these people just want to appear rich, essentially calling poor people posers. It's gross.
I guessed pretty early that the ending would include Josephine assisting the travelers in stealing from the Patton's guests. I was only half right, and unfortunately I was only right about the more racist part of this plot line. Always dissappointed to see the least favorable and most boring option being the ending we get from Leppard. I'll give her props for having a monkey show up guess. Didn't have monkey thieves on my list of possible solutions in this book.
Leppard also left some loose ends here, though. We never got an explanation how Josephine made it back from the beach on her own. We never found out why she was hiding from the rest of the kids.
What a weird book, dude. 3 more to go...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 11, 2020
The Mandie books are fun Christian mysteries for children, but I still love reading them. Even though she doesn't age very quickly and seems to get far too many breaks from school during the year, she's a lot of fun.
January 27, 2026
Disclaimer that these books should only be read for nostalgia value or as historical artifact. There's minimal redeeming value for the time you will invest. That said...
Mandie is a treasure of American moral confusion. In my memory all the Mandie books end with her endangering her life by being an impetuous girl and narrowly escaping through the power of prayer. This one has only one Bible verse, but it does have offensive portrayals of Black people, Native Americans, and gypsies. Also, an argument with her future husband about whether she's allowed to get a job when they're married, and an observation that we shouldn't judge people for being the new rich, but we should judge them for being house-rich and money-poor.
Mandie is a treasure of American moral confusion. In my memory all the Mandie books end with her endangering her life by being an impetuous girl and narrowly escaping through the power of prayer. This one has only one Bible verse, but it does have offensive portrayals of Black people, Native Americans, and gypsies. Also, an argument with her future husband about whether she's allowed to get a job when they're married, and an observation that we shouldn't judge people for being the new rich, but we should judge them for being house-rich and money-poor.
May 16, 2017
This Mandie book seemed very much like a repeat of the last book or two in the series, with the exception of a scenery change. Mandie heads down south to visit with the Patton family again. The reason why this one seems so much like the previous books is that (A) she's always trying to tag down her grandmother to make travel plans, and (B) when items disappear in the house, of course the kids have to scour every room of a 3-story mansion... every single time. It just seems repetitive, but I still love these books for kids.
August 16, 2017
In this book Mandie and her friends and family are visiting at Tommy Patton's house for a few days during the summer. Some of the servants there are hearing strange noises and then different jewelry goes missing. This story was okay to read but, not one of my favorites.
June 7, 2025
I love this series and it's good to remember that
Read
September 24, 2007Leppard, Lois G. PB
July 3, 2011
it was a good i recommend it
February 24, 2024
Fun mystery but ending wrapped up too quickly
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews