The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
by Alan Bradley
Bantam Books, 2010, Fiction, 385 p.
Flavia is an 11-year-old girl who lives in a venerable old house in England. Her mother has died, and she lives with two sisters, her father, and some domestics.  Flavia is obsessed with chemistry and is never happier than when she is distilling poisons in her great uncle's laboratory.  One day she hears an argument in her father's study, and then finds a man dead in the house's culinary garden. Could her father be a murder?  The police think so and it is up to Flavia to prove them wrong, if she can.

The charm of this book is Flavia's complex personality.  She is at once intrepid and vulnerable, cold blooded and compassionate.  Bradley has caught the essence of per-pubescent exuberance, still unfettered by hormones or social consciousness.  On top of that, Bradley has created a host of other interesting characters, a charming setting, and a well crafted plot.  This is an older book, but definitely worth trying if you haven't already.