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Passport to Danger #1
The Secret of Mezuzah
When Con, an American teenager living in Austria, learns that Vienna is a center of international intrigue, his search for a spy entangles him in a mystery that leads back to the Holocaust.
201 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1995
About the author
Mary Reeves Bell
4 books4 followersMary Reeves Bell is the author of a historical fiction trilogy for young adults that has also been translated into French and Norwegian. The first of these, The Secret of the Mezuzah, was honored by the Anne & Charles Corrin Jury at the Sorbonne for contributing to the remembrance of the Holocaust. Mary has written for Christian publications. She founded and devotes much of her time to a non-profit mercy ministry rescuing at-risk children in Romania. Mary lives with her husband, David, in the beautiful Virginia countryside.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 2, 2021
A story of mystery and intrigue, this holds your attention all the way through! View the cocky attitude and name calling as a lesson in negativity, and you, too, will enjoy this.
May 9, 2008
Mary Reeves Bell does a wonderful job portraying Con in this series. I found it amazing how well a woman portrayed the mind, conversation, and observations of a 16 year old young man.
Con lives in Austria with his mother and new British step-father Nigel, but he and his mother are Americans. His father was an Air Force pilot who died before Con was born during a training exercise. Con is obsessed with findigng spies and frequently recruits his best friend Hannah (an American girl with a Jewish heritage who attends Con's school) to follow "suspicious" people around town to see if they do anything "suspicious." None of these suspicious people are ever suspicious. So, Hannah humors Con in these "adventures" but is quick to point out they need better weekend plans. Con had better weekend plans one day when he visits a former apartment with his family that he and his mother had several years ago. Their former landlord was in his usual drunken form, and he gave Con a mezuzah. When questioned about how he--a German man--had a mezuzah, he answered that he got it fair and square. Cue Nazi skinhead hitmen, gunfire, murder attempts, a surprise reveal of who in Con's life is actually a spy, and kidnappings and you have this exciting tale of The Secret of the Mezuzah .
Whenever I read this book, I have the hardest time putting it down. The captivating style in which it is written results in an afternoon passing away in what seems like seconds. I greatly enjoyed the history integrated in this book, and the current events (well, somewhat current) that occur in this high culture area of Europe.
I definately, definately recommend this book (or any of the books in this series) to people of both genders and anyone over age 12. While nothing in this book is explicit in any way, the obvious hate the Nazis have for Jews is meant to be upsetting, and someone younger might have difficulty grasping the concept. So, parents and teachers, this makes a great discussion book, especially if WWII has been recently learned.
Con lives in Austria with his mother and new British step-father Nigel, but he and his mother are Americans. His father was an Air Force pilot who died before Con was born during a training exercise. Con is obsessed with findigng spies and frequently recruits his best friend Hannah (an American girl with a Jewish heritage who attends Con's school) to follow "suspicious" people around town to see if they do anything "suspicious." None of these suspicious people are ever suspicious. So, Hannah humors Con in these "adventures" but is quick to point out they need better weekend plans. Con had better weekend plans one day when he visits a former apartment with his family that he and his mother had several years ago. Their former landlord was in his usual drunken form, and he gave Con a mezuzah. When questioned about how he--a German man--had a mezuzah, he answered that he got it fair and square. Cue Nazi skinhead hitmen, gunfire, murder attempts, a surprise reveal of who in Con's life is actually a spy, and kidnappings and you have this exciting tale of The Secret of the Mezuzah .
Whenever I read this book, I have the hardest time putting it down. The captivating style in which it is written results in an afternoon passing away in what seems like seconds. I greatly enjoyed the history integrated in this book, and the current events (well, somewhat current) that occur in this high culture area of Europe.
I definately, definately recommend this book (or any of the books in this series) to people of both genders and anyone over age 12. While nothing in this book is explicit in any way, the obvious hate the Nazis have for Jews is meant to be upsetting, and someone younger might have difficulty grasping the concept. So, parents and teachers, this makes a great discussion book, especially if WWII has been recently learned.
May 13, 2009
I was pleasantly suprised by this book. I didn't expect it to be all that enthralling, but I read until...late finishing it. That doesn't mean that everyone has to read it or anything like that, but although I probably won't read it again, I'm glad I read it.
November 20, 2012
This is another one of those books I can't recall too much about. I know I liked it and it was one of the first mystery books I read, but that's about it.If I ever reread it, I'll be sure to update this.
December 27, 2014
I remember loving this book when I was in fifth grade, so I decided to see if it still felt as enjoyable all these years later. The answer is yes! I had still remembered some of the basic plot but definitely picked up more things now as an adult with increased knowledge of the world.
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April 2, 2009WW2-Bel
January 3, 2013
Absolutely loved this YA series!
September 8, 2014
Five stars! This was very good.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews