State of the Union: A Fina Mendoza Mystery - Hardcover

by Kitty Felde (Author)

A mysterious bird poops on the president's head during the State of the Union address.

The bird could be a Chickcharney, the legendary bird from the Caribbean, which may have come to Washington to deliver a secret message. Is it for the president? Or Congress? Or for Fina's friend, a cashier at the Capitol snack bar? Or maybe it's a message for Fina from her mom who passed away not so many months ago. Fina gets detecting help from a pair of congressional dogs as she searches for clues. The story mixes the mystery with a peek behind the scenes at the U.S. Capitol, including a congressional battle over immigration reform and a family battle when Fina's grandmother is nearly arrested at an immigration protest.

State of the Union is an introduction to civics for elementary school readers. It's The West Wing meets Nancy Drew.

Author Biography

Award-winning public radio journalist and TEDx speaker Kitty Felde hosts the Book Club for Kids podcast--named by The Times of London as one of the top 10 kidcasts in the world. The native Angeleno created the Washington bureau for Southern California Public Radio where she covered Capitol Hill, explaining how government works to grownups. Now, she explains it to kids in a series of mystery novels and podcasts called The Fina Mendoza Mysteries. Kitty was named LA Radio Journalist of the Year three times by the LA Press Club and the Society of Professional Journalists.