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Three Times Lucky
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Three Times Lucky
Unavailable
Three Times Lucky
Audiobook7 hours

Three Times Lucky

Written by Sheila Turnage

Narrated by Michal Friedman

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel--a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

Full of wisdom, humor, and grit, this timeless yarn will melt the heart of even the sternest Yankee.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateAug 2, 2012
ISBN9781101563199
Unavailable
Three Times Lucky
Author

Sheila Turnage

Sheila Turnage is from eastern North Carolina, just like Miss Moses LoBeau, the protagonist from Three Times Lucky. Her first novel for children, Three Times Lucky, is a Newbery Honor winner, a New York Times bestseller, an E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor Book, and an Edgar Award finalist. It has been nominated for six state awards and has been licensed in five countries. Her follow up book, The Ghosts of Tupelo Landing, also a New York Times bestseller, has received five starred reviews, is a SIBA Okra Winter 14 pick, and a Junior Library Guild selection. Sheila is also the author of two nonfiction adult titles: Haunted Inns of the Southeast and Compass American Guides: North Carolina, as well as one picture book, Trout the Magnificent illustrated by Janet Stevens. Her next children's book, The Odds of Getting Even (a Mo & Dale mystery) will be available in October 2015.

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Reviews for Three Times Lucky

Rating: 4.047965093604652 out of 5 stars
4/5

344 ratings48 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    recommend this book to kids ages 10 and up. If you like trying to figure out mysteries than this is a story you will certainly enjoy. I think Mo is a girl with a lot of spirit and voice. I found her town fascinating because everyone cares so much about each other and is involved in each other’s lives. So different from where I live! I like that Mo stands up for herself when her arch enemy tries to put her down. She is also a very creative problem solver and thinks on her feet. I think the idea of sending a message in a bottle is so exciting and I loved reading Mo’s letters. Both Dale and Mo seem like kids I would be friends with because they formed their own detective agency (awesome) and are trying to solve crimes. They are also nice and look out for others. Their strong friendship is inspiring. This is a quirky book with stand out characters that you will hear long after you turn the last page. There is a little violence in the book, but it seemed to be included in a way that wasn’t shocking or worrisome. If anything it made the book seem more realistic. I enjoyed the mystery in this book and was proud of myself for solving part of the mystery before it was revealed! If you are looking for a character who is spunky and different, then curl up with Mo and see if you can solve the case along with her!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    "Mo LoBeau doesn't know the story of her biological family. All she knows is her life in a tiny North Carolina town with the Colonel, who found her floating down a river in a hurricane the same day he lost his memory, and Miss Lana, who has raised Mo like her own. The three of them run a cafe next to their house, with the frequent help of Mo's best friend Dale.

    When a mysterious stranger shows up at the cafe asking questions - a lawman named Joe Starr - Mo and the Colonel suspect that trouble is on the way. But they have no idea just how much trouble is coming down the pipe. A cafe regular called Mr. Jesse turns up dead - murdered in his boat. The Colonel disappears. Dale's brother is in a high-speed car crash. And then there's the kidnapping.

    Mo and Dale set themselves on the case, not quite sure who they can trust. Will they solve the murder - and the question of Mo's past - before the killer strikes again?

    I fell for Mo, Dale, the Colonel, Miss Lana, and pretty much every important character in this book (of which there are many). I also found myself trying to figure out the mystery before the end of the book, but there are so many twists and surprises that I was on the edge of my seat until the very end. I couldn't put it down! The author brought Mo through an important journey in the book, and I loved the way she ended it.

    I wouldn't mind reading another volume about Mo LoBeau and the community at Tupelo Landing.

    Reviewed for the Emmet O'Neal Library Children's Department" by Rachel
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Well THAT was a snoozefest. A bunch of uninteresting characters trying to solve a mystery I couldn't give a rat's butt about.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    MO, short for Moses is a spunky and smart rising sixth grader who washed up in one of the meanest hurricanes in history. She lives in a small town called Tupelo Landing in North Carolina with a population of 148, she Lives with the Colonel and Miss Lana who run a cafe.In the begging a not very well liked man named Mr.Jesse is murdered.Mo and her friends set out to find the murderer, but then Miss Lana and the Colonel are kidnapped!Can Mo and her friends find the murderer and save Miss Lana and the Colonel in time? You'll have to rad to find out. I really like this book. I liked it because it gave you a sense of excitement and suspense until the very end, it was a real page turner.I recommend this book to mature readers because there is a bit of foul language and things that could make younger readers quite scared.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    three times lucky is areally good book I really liked the story line behind the book the only part I did not like was with this girl named Alice because she was really boring.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book is about an eleven year old girl named Moe. She lives in a small town where the Colonel and a woman named Mrs. Lana takes care of her. She got put adrift by her mother in a hurricane and the Colonel found her. She has a best friend named Dale. One day a man in town gets murdered. Will Dale and Moe figure out who did it? I liked this book because of all the action in it. The mystery of who killed one of the people living in town keeps you on edge. It becomes very suspenseful at the end, and ends with an unexpected twist. I recommend this book to people who like a good mystery.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    For a Mystery/Thriller buff like me I am amazed I love a kids book! Mo is a spunky 11 year old whippersnapper who was found as an infant floating on a river after a hurricane and has been trying to find her "up stream mother" ever since. Moses Lobeau "Mo" loves her Miss Lana & The Colonel who found and care for her, together they run a small & very unique cafe in the tiny town of Tupelo Landing in NC, population 148... This book has mystery, mayhem, fun quirky characters, hurricanes & sweet tea! Just a delightful read
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Children's mystery/middlegrade (some violence/scariness; harshest language used is "crud"). Murder mystery shakes up charming small Southern town. Quirky, layered, recommended!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It took me a while to get into this book. The voice bugged me, and I kept being reminded of other books I liked better. However, I got over most of that in the first third. The small-town, quirky characters won me over, and the mystery certainly held my attention. While I may have caught on to the solution faster than the average 9-year-old, it wasn't painfully obvious. In fact, I was harboring a different theory about the bank robbery altogether.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Mo LoBeau is my newest, favorite storyteller. Twelve years old and desperate to find her "Upstream Mother", she is the spunky, smart, and sassy narrator of this mystery from Tupelo Landing, North Carolina. I love her voice: she is believable, as are all the minor characters from the flinty voiced Colonel to her best friend Dale and his big brother Lavender, whom she not-so-secretly is plotting to marry when she's eighteen. Told from a place where cell phone coverage and high-speed Internet doesn't reach, this story is old-fashioned fun without any of the pretense that life is simpler in simpler times and places. No, it is every bit as nuanced and flavorful, perhaps even more so, in small-towns where everyone knows your name ... and your business.

    Fans of Sharon Creech and Deborah Wiles will think they've died and gone to Heaven.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I really liked this book and I loved the second in the series. Mo and Dale are clearly written characters with individual quirks that make them interesting but never unreal. Mo has some flaws and I don't like them, but overall I like her better for having them. Dale is delightful. If I could time travel into the future twenty years, one thing I'd do is look to see how many more Tupelo Landing books I can buy and enjoy. As it is, I'll have to wait for the third in the series and hope that the author has plenty more planned.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This Newbery Honor book is highly deserving of the accolades thrown its way. Mo (short for Moses, because as a baby she was found floating down a river) learns through the course of an action-packed summer, the true meaning of family. Growing up in Tupelo Landing, North Carolina, (pop. 148) Mo has always thought of herself as "three times lucky"--once because her unknown "Upstream Mother" tied her to a raft during a hurricane and sent her downstream, lucky twice because the Colonel crashed his car into a tree and stumbled into the creek just in time to save her, and lucky three times because Miss Lana took her in and raised Mo as her own. Although the language and the story, told in Mo LoBeau's own words, have many elements of a tall tale (and we seldom know if a character is speaking the truth, or just spinning another tale) the excitement of Mo's summer as a "rising sixth grader" is compelling. There are many mysteries to be solved--not the least of which is who is the Colonel? And, who is Mo, for that matter? The language sings of the South. The characters could only exist there--they are all eccentric, and many are fighting battles that Mo is just barely old enough to understand. I read Three Times Lucky a couple weeks ago, and am ready to pick it up and read it again right now. Mo and her Tupelo Landing family and friends are well worth knowing!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Narrated by Michal Friedman. In a small North Carolina town, Mo LoBeau and her friend Dale find themselves figuring out a murder and how to keep her guardians, the Colonel and Lana, from being implicated. Leisurely paced, just like the south which made the mystery a tad too slow-spooling for me. Friedman is top-notch at voicing young characters and bringing out the characterizations of Mo's friends and neighbors.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Mo and her friend Dale brashly take on the investigation of a local murder. They are cheeky, and over their heads, but they and the residents of Tupelo Landing learn there's more to these two than kids playing at Private Eye. As much a revealing look at communal dynamics, the public and private, as it is about a caper, the story jolts & bounces along back roads and cafe counters as it reveals the mystery. There are significant subplots concerning domestic violence and rural/urban tensions. But the reason to read the book is for Mo's voice, coming through her pre-teen outlook, her rural upbringing, her search for her birth mother, her precocious sense of humour.R familiar due to book reports from classmates, including MH. At one point I feared she wouldn't be interested, but in fact she was eager to start the first night, definitely grinning as we read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I really liked listening to this audiobook, the print version of which nabbed a Newbery Honor this year. Mo LoBeau, rising sixth grader and our narrator, finds herself and her small NC town of Tupelo Landing in the middle of a murder mystery that ends up being years in the making.

    We are first treated to a bit of exposition and an introduction to the small, sleepy town and its residents. Mo and her adoptive family, the Colonel and Miss Lana, run the town cafe. We learn about Mo's history, a baby who was washed away from her "upstream mother" (as she calls her) during a hurricane and rescued by the Colonel, who came to town with a "suitcase full of money" (so they say) and without his memory.

    Various other townsfolk wander in and out of the narrative, and they are mostly well-rounded characters at that.

    Tupelo Landing itself is a charming setting for such a serious event as a murder, and I felt Turnage handled it all incredibly well. The murder itself is not glossed over for the benefit of the children, and Mo's reaction to the news is very believable, as are everyone else's. Yet Mo's quick tongue and humor are enchanting, lifting the mood considerably despite the danger and ugliness. Abuse, abandonment, and poverty are all major themes, but Turnage's prose is delightful and calming, which balances everything out nicely.

    I had trouble with the ending of the novel, which felt abrupt to me. Everything was wrapped up very quickly, and I was surprised when I got to the end as I felt like something was missing. But despite this minor quibble, overall I thought it was a well done piece of writing. Deserving of the Newbery Honor it received? Maybe, maybe not. But definitely deserving of your time.

    Michal Friedman does an excellent job narrating. She gave Mo a young girl's voice with spunk and a gentle Southern twang, giving every word and phrase just the right amount of emphasis. Her acting was spot on, and it's very disappointing to hear that she's passed on and will be unable to give her voice to any other characters in the future.

    This is a lovely, well-done audiobook that I definitely would recommend to fans of middle-grade fiction, Southern fiction, and mysteries.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    What a charming book (and neat summer read)! I had to read this book in two parts because it was recalled by the public library before I had a chance to finish it (thanks to summer school), but it was an easy book to pick back up. I'm a sucker for books with North Carolina settings anyway, and I really enjoyed the characters as well. The fact that the story had a girl named Moses and a boy named Lavender (among characters), and that it totally worked, is just one example of this charming tale. I can see why this made the Newbery list (didn't win top prize, but a runner-up).
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    Although the main character's voice is distinctive, the story as a whole seems a little scary for the age group the book is aimed at, and a lot of the color is of the Southern variety, which, for me, a little can go a long way. It's different, but not great.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Utterly goofy and improbable, but not without a certain charm. The character Dale, the heroine's best friend, was adorable.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Mo LoBeau lives in Tupelo Landing with Miss Lana and the Colonel. Eleven years ago Mo floated down the river during a storm and the Colonel found her after getting into a car accident and forgetting his memory. They both settle in town and Mo lives with the Colonel and Lana who run a diner in town. She loves her adopted family fiercely (even though she still looks for her upstream mother) and most everyone else in town as the town is so small that everyone is heavily involved in everyone else's business. When a police officer comes to town looking for a murdered Mo and her best friend Dale will do everything in their power to protect the ones they love.

    What a funny, quirky mystery. The characters are just so amazing. I ended up wishing I could visit Tupelo and meet all these funny, loving people. Miss Lana and the Colonel are both a little bit crazy but you can see how much they love Mo and her friends. Lavender, Dale and Miss Rose were also really intriguing and interesting. I did find myself wondering if someday 10 years from now Mo and Lavender really will end up together. All of the characters and their small town in everybody's business love/hate relationships had me cracking up.

    There were some parts of the plot I was able to figure out such as why Miss Rose had Dale fixing things up, however a lot of the mystery I didn't see coming including who dunnit which I was really excited about. It's been awhile since I read a mystery that I didn't figure out right away. I also loved it when the Colonel found out who he was. That brought a huge smile to my face.

    While it doesn't need it, I do find myself hoping for some kind of sequel. I would love to go back to Tupelo Landing and see Mo and Detective Starr solve another mystery.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Mo's summer is looking good. But that's before the murder, the kidnapping, the car crash, and the hurricane. Now she and her best friend are setting out to solve the mystery of their lives. Good thing Mo's always been lucky.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A lighthearted look about a small town coping with a mysterious murder. Our narrator, Mo, is a rising 6th grader who tries to solve the mystery with her best friend, Dale Earnhardt. Through Mo's eyes we get to know the people in the town and how their lives are intersected. This is also about Mo's unorthodox searching for her birth mother. It is a pretty fast read even though it is 312 pages. A good book to recommend to fifth grade readers. AR 3.9/ 9 points. Not really a third grade book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A great murder mystery for grades 5 and up. It keeps you guessing right to the end. Jam packed with adventure and intrigue. Very well done.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    What begins as a tale of friendship and finding family in unconventional ways twists course to become a murder/kidnapping mystery. While the story which includes domestic abuse, longing for a lost parent and natural disasters, might frighten some, the quirkiness and voice of Moses LoBeau, along with the Colonel and Turnage's other finely drawn characters, will engage and entertain readers between 8 and 12.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Alan Bradley has done it again! He has written another stand out installment in this wonderful series. Once again I chose the audio book which combines Alan Bradley's decadent writing with Jayne Entwistle's outstanding vocal performance. In this latest escapade Flavia is working to find out who assaulted a gypsy fortune teller who was predicting the future at the church carnival. This volume gives us more insight into who Flavia is and how she is misunderstood by others. Although Flavia is brilliant and wise beyond her years she is at her core a young girl you yearns for the love and affection of her father and sisters. While this book had all the wit and dark humor of the previous titles this book is also quite tender and has several touching moments. 3 titles in and I haven't been disappointed yet! 4 stars
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Fun adventure and friendship book!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    For a Mystery/Thriller buff like me I am amazed I love a kids book! Mo is a spunky 11 year old whippersnapper who was found as an infant floating on a river after a hurricane and has been trying to find her "up stream mother" ever since. Moses Lobeau "Mo" loves her Miss Lana & The Colonel who found and care for her, together they run a small & very unique cafe in the tiny town of Tupelo Landing in NC, population 148... This book has mystery, mayhem, fun quirky characters, hurricanes & sweet tea! Just a delightful read
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Moses LoBeau (aka Mo) is a spunky 11-year-old girl who loves an adventure. But, when robbery, murder, and kidnapping arrive at her small town of Tupelo Landing, Mo and her best friend, Dale, decide to form a detective agency and solve the crimes, much to the chagrin of recently arrived Detective Starr.What I liked: lots of great characters. Because the story takes place in a small town, all the characters (except the recently arrived detective) all know each other very well (maybe too well) and their interactions are fun and perfect. The main character is a true spitfire and the kind of girl you’d want as a friend if you were 11. It’s a mystery, which I love, and gets even more exciting as you near the end.What I didn’t like: It’s a slow beginning. Very slow. Even though there’s a murder pretty close to the beginning of the book, it takes a while for the action to pick up. I found myself dragging to read the first half of the book. But, once I hit the second half, I had a hard time putting it down. Very exciting.Overall, a good book.4 out of 5 stars
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Mo LoBeau washed up as a newborn baby in depressed Tupelo Landing, NC after a hurricane 11 years ago and was raised with love by a man simply called "The Colonel" who arrived in the small town with amnesia and her in his arms and the cook, Miss Lana, at the local café. Mo and her best friend Dale lead the simple lives of kids, until a murder takes place and an out-of-town detective and policewoman start hanging around. Mo suddenly has very pressing things in her bottle messages to her "Upstream Mother." Mo has a spirit that never gives up, no matter what life throws at her, and a sense of humor as well. This book is especially good for girls gr 4-6, as boys might find Mo's crush on Dale's big brother rather repulsive.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    With a bang of an opening, Turnage drags us into the Southern world of Miss Moses LoBeau, an almost sixth grader with a flare for deadpan humor and detecting. Once started, I could not easily leave Tupelo Landing, its cast of eccentric characters, and the mystery haunting the small town. Turnage employs masterful similes and metaphors to set the scene, describe her characters, and keep the plot accelerating. "The stranger looked slow around the café, his eyes the color of a thin winter sky." (p. 13) "... the map bristles like a neon porcupine," I also loved the inclusion of Mo's letters to her biological "Upstream Mother." Any book that makes me laugh out loud as I'm reading is worth its weight in salt.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It is no secret that the 2013 Newbery Selection Committee and I didn't see eye to eye. The One and Only Ivan wins and Wonder doesn't even get an Honor? Seriously?! However, they did get it right (well, sort of... this definitely should have won over The One and Only Ivan !) with Three Times Lucky . Oh, how I loved this book! The beginning made me want to go out and rent the movie Fried Green Tomatoes . It just has that pure southern feeling to it, and the main character's foster-parents own a café. And then there's a murder. I fully expected some special barbeque to start cooking out back :) . Miss Moses Lobeau - rising sixth grader - and her best friend Dale Earnhardt Johnson III (no, his daddy and granddaddy aren't named that too, the III stands for Dale Earnhardt's car number) set out to solve the murder of a crotchety neighbor by forming the "Desparado Detective Agency". Their attempts are hilarious, yet actually quite helpful. One of my favorite quotes from the book is Mo talking to the fancy detective from the city: “They found Mr. Jesse in a boat?" I asked. "I'm wondering if maybe he just up and died. Maybe there ain't no murder. Like the fish weren't biting and he died of boredom. It happens. Boredom kills. I've had close brushes myself, during math.” I love Mo's voice and laughed out loud over and over again while reading some of her comments. But let's not leave out Dale. What a great supporting character! We learn more about him from Mo's observances than anything. Two of my favorites:1. Dale can choose not to worry like he chooses not to wear socks. 2. He peeked around the door. "You through barfing?" Dale can't tolerate other people throwing up. He gets what's known as the Synchronized Heaves. Lavender says if they ever make it an Olympic sport, Dale's an automatic for the gold. And yes, Lavender is the name of Dale's older brother, who Mo plans on dating in 7 years when she is 18. Her observances on the different girls Lavender dates are also well worth reading.This is a book I could read over and over again. It is full of quirky characters, down-home southern wisdom, exciting events, and laugh out loud humor. A great children's book should be enjoyable to children and adults, and Three Times Lucky is great!Areas of concern:*The murder of a character well known to the reader and the characters.*It is mentioned that Dale started swearing last year. I haven't started yet, but the way things are going, I could at any moment. *The relationship between the foster-parents is a little unusual, but is explained (not fully) towards the end of the book.**All of the above are just me trying really hard to think of anything that could be a concern to any parents - I really had no concerns about it at all.