Judy Haddad had a good reason for orchestrating her mother’s murder.
Haddad, head of the Deerfield Public Library’s Youth Services Department, thought a murder mystery would be the perfect way to draw youngsters to the library as part of the “Go Undercover” summer reading program. And her mother, Carolyn Haddad, who assists with the program, was happy to play the victim.
So, on a recent Friday afternoon, the elder Haddad faked her own death as a handful of students looked on.
She entered the Youth Services room moaning and complaining of severe stomach pains. Moments later, she dropped to the floor.
It was up to the students to find out who did it–and why.
The Haddads came up with the fictional murder as a way to introduce students to the different departments of the library that they soon will be using for school assignments and projects. The students will be entering grades 6 through 9 this fall.
Carolyn Haddad said students entering junior high and high school are at an “awkward age in the library, when they are not children and are not quite adults. This is a fun way to introduce them to the rest of the library.”
Clues were set up in different areas of the two-story building. To solve the case, the sleuths were forced to explore several departments and ask library workers for information.
Suzanne Donoval and Janelli Soto, both 11 and entering the 6th grade this fall at Shepard Junior High School in Deerfield, and Irene Ying, 13, who will enter the 8th grade at Caruso Junior High School in Deerfield, said that while canvassing for clues, they visited parts of the library they had never visited before.
“I’ve never been in that room before,” said Suzanne, pointing to the fiction room.
“I’ve found out about a lot of different parts to the library,” Irene said.
After nearly an hour of investigating, the three girls, led by Irene, determined that Haddad was poisoned by Karen Kleckner, head of reader services in the fiction department.
Judy Haddad said children of all ages are welcome to come to the library all summer to read and earn points that can be redeemed for gifts in the library’s Undercover Spy Shop. Almost any book in the library can be read for points, but children earn extra points when they read and report on one of the library’s designated “challenge books,” which this summer all have an espionage or mystery theme.
As of Friday, Judy Haddad said more than 100 children in grades 6 through 9 had come to the library to report on books since the program began June 16.
