Jess and the Fireplug Caper by Elaine Shulte

Jess and the Fireplug Caper was copyrighted in 1992 by author Elaine Shulte. This Christian fiction book was published by Bethany House Publishers and is 128 pages long. It is part of the Twelve Candles Club series and is for girls 8-12.

Somebody is robbing houses in Santa Rosita Estates and calling Jess on the phone making growling noises. A teen was robbing the houses and Jess’s brother Jordan was the one making the phone calls. Whenever there is a robbery in the neighborhood there is an old blue van. Jess’s mom begins a neighborhood watch. The girls of the Twelve Candles Club; Jess, Becky, Cara and Tricia are always watching as they go out on their different jobs. It is not until the very end when the burglar comes into Jess’s bedroom, when all the girls are there, that they are able to stop him. They are able to stop the burglar from stealing and as the burglar runs downs the street the entire neighborhood runs after him. He stops and gives up and the police arrest him. Throughout this book, Jess, her dad, and Jordan learn more about God and the strength he can give us. Jess needed that strength when she knocks over the burglar. Jess and Jordan learned about how we need to forgive and ask for forgiveness whether it is from our friends and family or our enemies.

Elaine Shulte, who has written over 25 novels, did an excellent job with her characters and the description. I could see the girls dressed in their clown costumes. The flow was so good I just wanted to keep reading.

There are two themes that arise in this book. The first one is forgiveness and the other is that in Christ we get strength and all things are possible. This book can help us realize that when we have Christ on our side and in our hearts we can do anything.

I liked how Becky and Tricia are always talking about God without being forcing Cara and Jess. I did not like how Jess’s mom was so negative against her father when he decided that it was time to start saying grace before eating.

This paperback book has dark print, which always encourages me to continue reading. I would recommend this book, because we need to be reminded about forgiveness and the strength we can find in Christ.