Wanda’s Game

“Lena Hach is one of the best German children’s book authors. Her books are thin but dense. She nails her sentences so that they smoothly fit. Easy to read and yet heavyweight. “Wanda’s Game” works like an “Ocean’s Eleven”: a spectacular theft, carried out by a talented troupe with whom everyone sympathises. […] There are six special children who become a team here. They weren’t friends before, they have reservations about each other and learn in the course of their joint coup that nothing is as it seems at first glance. […] A great book, exciting, funny – and the planned coup is illustrated with really good sketches.” – ndr.de/kultur, Mikado, Katharina Mahrenholtz

“With humour, situational comedy and a loving eye for outsiders – Exciting children’s novel for fans of “Ocean’s Eleven” and “Breakfast Club” – Fast-paced gangster thriller for children aged 11 and over – Ingeniously illustrated with numerous sketchnotes.” – kinderbuch-couch.de

“Suspense building at its very best! Then there’s the very special main character and the different characters of her helpers, laconic humour, a wacky plot with surprising twists and turns. And all of this packed into miniature chapters in which every word is just right – plus sketchnotes that help you understand Wanda’s clever planning. A real reading coup (with a dash of “Oceans Eleven”) that will also appeal to not-so-keen readers!” – Stiftung Lesen

“Even more than a crook story, ‘Wanda’s Game’ is a book about friendship and prejudice. […] Apart from the social criticism that ‘Wanda’s Game’ conveys, the novel is an exciting burglary story that is made very entertaining by various failures and mishaps. After all, forging plans is like anything else in life: Nothing always works out exactly as you thought it would.” – FAZ

“This children’s crime novel is marvellous! Slapstick, quirky characters, lots of humour and suspense – from the beginning of the coup, you can hardly catch your breath while reading.” – Literaturblog Sabine Ibing

“This coup and its characters are simply brilliant. A hot book tip for anyone who loves exciting children’s books with diverse and inclusive characters and lots of situation comedy.” – Mutter und Söhnchen Blog

“It is a very special crime thriller because, unlike other crime thrillers, it is told from the point of view of the bad guys. […] The crime thriller pulls you in right from the start.” – The Jury, Friedrich Glauser Prize

“What does Wanda really want?
Even her allies only realise this at the very end. And now Wanda’s plan appears in a different light. Was she not pursuing a purely criminal goal after all? Is there even a moral justification for the burglary? Every reader has to decide for themselves. And that, along with all the other advantages of this book, is the great strength of ‘Wanda’s Game’.” – Criminale