Mystery

Bog Gone! (Finders Creatures, Book 1) by P. Knuckle Jones

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Published by Penguin Workshop

Summary:  Second grader Finder (frog) and his friends Keeper (turtle), and Chopper (Beaver) have their hands/paws full when the other animals from Belly Acre Bog disappear.  Finder’s hero is Seymour Warts, a brilliant detective based on Sherlock Holmes, who solves his own mystery during the course of the story.  A series of misadventures ensues, but both Finder and Seymour manage to crack their cases.  112 pages; grades 2-4.

Pros:  The many fans of early graphic novels like The Bad Guys, Max Meow, and The InvestiGators will enjoy this mystery, which includes plenty of madcap humor.  The word choices and color-coded speech bubbles makes this a good choice for newly independent readers.

Cons:  No sign yet of book 2.

The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale by Jon Klassen

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Candlewick

Summary:  Otilla is running away and lost in the forest.  She stumbles upon an old house that looks abandoned but turns out to be inhabited by a skull.  The skull shows her around: there are creepy masks, a dangerously high tower, and a bottomless pit.  He invites her to stay for the night but warns her of a headless skeleton that chases him every night, and “I am not as fast as I used to be.”  Sure enough, the skeleton shows up in the middle of the night, but Otilla is ready.  By the time the story ends, that skeleton will not be bothering anyone ever again, and the skull and Otilla have decided that she will stay in the house.  Includes an author’s note about how he came to write this folktale retelling which gives a pretty interesting spin on the oral tradition.  112 pages; grades 1-4.

Pros:  As usual with Jon Klassen, expect the unexpected.  This book, which looks more like a chapter book than a picture book, is told in five parts, but can probably be read in one longish sitting.  It’s creepy and funny and just dark enough to give kids the shivers.  Perfect for the Halloween season, with the distinctive Klassen illustrations that I’m sure will be considered for a Caldecott. The author’s note, featuring a wise Alaskan librarian, would make a good addition to folktale units.

Cons:  I’m always worried that Jon Klassen books are too dark and/or too weird for early elementary. Yet they never are.

The Firefly Summer by Morgan Matson

~ Janet Dawson ~ 5 Comments

Published by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Summary:  When Ryanna gets an invitation from her estranged maternal grandparents to spend the summer at their house on a lake in the Poconos, she’s not sure if she wants to go.  But questions about her late mother motivate her to accept, and what she had imagined as a few quiet months with grandparents turns out to be a fun, busy summer surrounded by aunts, uncles, and cousins.  Partway through her time there, she learns that her grandparents have been forced to sell the camp, and that everything will be bulldozed and developed into condos in the fall.  Ryanna and her cousins discover a treasure hunt her mother created when she was 12 that could lead to the piece of paper her grandparents need to stop the sale of their property.  It’s a race against time as the kids slowly figure out the mystery and Ryanna unravels her own mystery about her mother and the early days of her own childhood.  385 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  A perfect summer read with an idyllic setting, lots of interesting characters, some family secrets to discover, and a mystery or two to solve.  Morgan Matson perfectly captures the feel of a tech-free summer spent outdoors with friends, and the pacing will keep readers turning the pages all the way to the end.

Cons:  I know from sad experience that a lot of readers in the intended demographic will be turned off by the page count.     

The Carrefour Curse by Dianne K. Salerni

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Published by Holiday House

Summary:  Garnet has always loved her mother’s stories about growing up with her large extended family at the Crossroad House, but her mom fled the house long ago, and Garnet has never seen it.  It takes an episode of vomiting frogs to get the two of them back there, where they find the house in disrepair and the family dealing with the family patriarch, Jasper, who is staying alive by sucking the life energy from anyone he can.  As Garnet learns more about her magical family and their history, she discovers powers of her own beyond the magic she has always practiced.  When a crisis threatens her and her cousins, she must use those powers to save herself and to put her family on a new and more promising path.  224 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Buckle yourself in for a magical mystery tour of an ancient house and family that holds more than its share of dark secrets.  Anyone who enjoys a good mystery with a generous dose of spookiness is in for a treat. Dianne Salerni does an amazing job of creating a richly detailed magical family history in just over 200 pages.

Cons:  I struggled to keep all the members of the family straight.  I wish the family tree, which I had to refer to frequently, had been at the beginning of the book instead of on pages 10 and 11.

The Mystery of the Love List by Sarah Glenn Marsh, illustrated by Ishaa Lobo

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Published by Viking Books for Young Readers

Summary:  As the only porcupine in her class, Pippa sometimes feels like she stands out.  It’s a lonely feeling.  When her teacher makes a Valentine’s assignment to compile a list of “things that take up room in your heart”, Pippa would rather read her latest Sherlock Gnomes book.  But when she finds a heart with a list that’s similar to her own, she puts her detective skills to work trying to figure out who her potential friend might be.  It’s a tough case to crack, but when Pippa finally figures it out, she comes up with the perfect way to connect: writing a new story called “Sherlock Gnomes and the Mystery of the New Best Friend,” which she leaves for her friend to find in her desk.  The last page shows Pippa and new friend Mitzie the Mouse meeting up in the forest.  32 pages; ages 4-8.

Pros:  A cute story for Valentine’s Day that celebrates friendship and introduces some elements of mystery books.  Kids will have fun spotting Pippa’s new friend in the pictures before she figures out who it is.

Cons:  It doesn’t feel like the right week to be thinking about Valentine’s Day.

The Ghost Tree (Spooky Sleuths #1) by Natasha Deen, illustrated by Lissy Martin

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Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Asim is new in the island town of Lion’s Gate, Washington, where both of his parents work at the island’s somewhat mysterious lab.  On his first day of school, Asim discovers a mysterious tree in the cemetery that grows unusually fast and seems to be destroying other life around it.  He witnesses a construction worker touch the tree and undergo a complete personality change.  Later, he befriends Rokshar, a girl in his class who aspires to be a scientist and takes a more skeptical view of events that Asim interprets as supernatural.  When their teacher, Mx Hudson, is also negatively affected by the tree, Asim, Rokshar, and some of their friends have to figure out a way to destroy the tree–even if it puts them in danger.  Includes an author’s note about the Guyanese folklore that inspired the story and a sneak peek at book #2.  95 pages; grades 2-4.

Pros:  This illustrated chapter book will appeal to the many kids who like scary stories, but who may not be ready for horror.  It’s a promising series starter with interesting characters and just the right amount of spookiness mixed with scientific skepticism.

Cons:  It’s unclear how Rokshar’s brothers go from being bullies to allies so quickly.

Let the Monster Out by Chad Lucas

~ Janet Dawson ~ 1 Comment

Published by Harry N. Abrams

Summary:  Bones is struggling to adapt to his new home in a small Nova Scotia town.  He’s one of the few Black kids, and he’s trying to put some past trauma behind him.  Kyle has never received an official autism diagnosis, but it’s becoming increasingly clear to him that his brain works differently from most other people’s.  Although the two are baseball teammates, they seem unlikely to become friends until they both are affected by the strange happenings going on in their town. Kids are having the same nightmares, and the adults around them are acting like zombies.  Everything seems to be connected to Fluxcor, the giant tech company that has an outsized influence in town.  After somewhat reluctantly joining forces with teammates Marcus and Albert, Bones and Kyle race against time to defeat the company and its evil CEO before it’s too late.  320 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  This isn’t typically my favorite genre, but I got sucked into the story pretty quickly and polished it off in three days.  I saw Netflix’s Stranger Things referenced in several reviews, and this would definitely appeal to fans of that show.  But it’s not just a scary story; Bones and Kyle are dealing with real issues in their lives and fighting the evil forces around them helps them to move ahead with those situations as well.  It’s also a nice celebration of boys’ friendships.

Cons:  I got kind of tired of Bones and Albert’s constant bickering, and my hopes that Albert had an interesting backstory never really materialized. 

Catalina Incognito (book 1) by Jennifer Torres, illustrated by Gladys Jose

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Published by Aladdin

Summary:  Catalina’s a bit disappointed to receive a sewing kit from her Tía Abuela for her birthday.  Usually Tía, a former telenovela star who is also named Catalina, gives more exciting gifts.  For their first sewing lesson, Tía shows Cat how to fix her torn cat sweatshirt.  Later, Cat realizes the sweatshirt can temporarily transform her into a cat.  It turns out the sewing kit has magic in it that can change ordinary clothing into disguises.  Becoming a cat comes in handy when a ruby goes missing from one of Tía’s most famous gowns on display at the local library.  Cat and her frenemy Pablo combine forces to solve the mystery.  This is the first of a four-part series, simultaneously released with book 2 (there’s a preview at the end of this book).  Books 3 and 4 will be out later this year.  114 pages; grades 1-3. 

Pros:  There’s a lot going on in this early chapter book: magic, a mystery, and a few lessons about perseverance.  The illustrations and larger font make it an appealing choice for younger kids.

Cons:  The mystery didn’t start until about halfway through the book and wrapped up pretty quickly. I hope Pablo gets a bigger role in book 2.

The Supernatural Society (book 1) by Rex Ogle

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Published by Inkyard Press

Summary:  Will’s struggling with his parents’ recent divorce, his father’s abandonment, and a move from New York City to the small town of East Emerson.  At first he thinks that the monsters he’s seeing in his new town are some overenthusiastic Halloween fans, but before long he realizes that he alone can see the horrors all around him.  Alone, that is, except for his somewhat eccentric neighbor Ivy, who’s in possession of a ring that allows her to see them as well.  Her brilliantly geeky brother Linus doesn’t have the gift and isn’t sure what to believe, but the three of them ultimately form a team to solve the mystery of disappearing pets in town and discover the evil force behind it.  Narrated by Adam Monster, with a voice that evokes A Series of Unfortunate Events, the book ends with a number of unresolved issues, paving the way for book 2 and beyond.  288 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Fans of Lemony Snicket, The Notebook of Doom series, and other books that combine humor and horror will enjoy this series opener that delivers plenty of both.

Cons:  I was sure that Adam Monster’s identity would be revealed in a way that would somehow tie into the rest of the story, but at least in book 1 he seemed to be a somewhat random choice for a narrator.

Spy School: The Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs, illustrated by Anjan Sarkar

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Ben Ripley has always dreamed of being a spy, but he’s still pretty shocked when he suddenly gets recruited to a school that’s secretly training young CIA operatives. The school is similar to a regular middle school in some ways: bad food, boring classes, and pompous administrators, but the attempted assassinations and hidden bombs put a new spin on things.  It appears that someone has brought Ben to the school for their own nefarious purposes but trying to figure out who that is and why proves to be both challenging and dangerous.  Fortunately, Ben is aided by Erica, the smartest (and coolest) girl in the school.  The enemy is foiled at last, but a letter at the end promises a sequel, and fans of the non-graphic Spy School series know that Ben’s adventures are just beginning. 296 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  There are already legions of Spy School fans, and the graphic novel will undoubtedly recruit many more.  I haven’t read the original, so I don’t know how this compares, but there’s plenty of action and humor which is always a winning combination for upper elementary and middle school.

Cons:  The artwork lacked much background detail and was a bit flat.