Cleaning through my library pile for the end of the year! Also feeling a tad completionist since i've read other Julie mysteries and should just get through them all.

The Silver Guitar is a classic whodunnit when a precious cultural artifact (not!JimiHendrix's guitar) goes missing before an auction to benefit sea birds dying from an oil spill in San Francisco's bay. Suspects include the rich people's live-in nephew, the nosy neighbor, the housekeeper, and the skateboard kid, among others. Julie also learns that the world isn't black and white and even though it'd be nice to paint the oil tankers as evil, maybe they had a bad day doing their jobs so society can continue to be fueled (but also heyyyy oil companies have definitely contributed to stifling moves to prevent climate catastrophe so maybe a mixed lesson here).

I had rock-bottom expectations for this, but it was actually pretty good. I found the story engaging despite its minor plot holes, and the author did a great job planting red herrings and making multiple people look suspicious. I also appreciated the friendship dynamic between Julie and TJ. Since they are in fifth grade, they are the age where most authors would present cross-gender friendship as a plot conflict, but instead, it is a normal, secure, and happy part of their lives.

The author also did a nice job incorporating details about the environmental impact of an oil spill. The premise description made this seem liked a tacked-on concept, but it is a solid thread throughout the story, and even though it is heavy-handed at times, Julie learns that things are more complicated than they seem, and is able to process the tragedy for animals without assuming that the people involved are villains. This book originally released in 2011, a year after the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and the topic was timely and well-handled in both the story and the historical note.