Book Finder

Cam (short for “Camera”) uses her photographic memory to help solve the theft of the cans and bottles to be recycled to earn money for her school. This installment in the gentle mystery series features a particularly timely topic.

When orphans Prosper, age 12, and Bo, age 5, run away to Venice, they find themselves in the company of a gang of teens who live in an abandoned movie theater and rob the rich to survive. A little bit of mystery, a little bit of fantasy, and a lot of the Venetian setting.

Hermux Tantamoq is a simple watchmaker mouse. Linka Perflinger is a daring mouse aviatrix, with a watch that needs fixing. When Hermux agrees to do the repair, he falls for Linka and gets dragged into an adventure involving mad scientists and a garish cosmetics maven mouse.

Cam Jansen’s photographic memory once again foils the bad guy as she helps catch the thief who snitches her grandparents’ luggage — along with birthday gifts for Cam’s parents — at the airport. There is a lot to celebrate in this well-paced and engagingly narrated mystery.

Sam is almost 11 when he discovers a locked box in the attic above his grandfather Mack’s room, and a piece of paper that says he was kidnapped. There are lots of other words, but Sam has always had trouble reading. He’s desperate to find out who he is, and if his beloved Mack is really his grandfather. At night he’s haunted by dreams of a big castle and a terrifying escape on a boat. Who can he trust to help him read the documents that could unravel the mystery? Then he and the new girl, Caroline, are paired up to work on a school project, building a castle in Mack’s woodworking shop. Caroline loves to read, and she can help. But she’s moving soon, and the two must hurry to discover the truth about Sam.

Mercy loves buttered toast, so she assumes someone is making it when she hears the noise in the kitchen. What she finds, however, is a thief trying to steal the toaster! What follows is funny, fast, and very much in keeping for Mercy Watson.

Though only 10 years old, Alonzo King wants to be the “boy of a thousand faces” just like his favorite actor Lon Chaney is the “man of a thousand faces” in the horror movies that Alonzo watches on late-night television. As Halloween approaches, Alonzo becomes an expert in using make-up and knowledge of The Beast.

Image and text combine in a unique presentation to tell the story of an orphan boy who lives between the walls of a Paris train station and repairs its clocks. Monochromatic illustrations change perspective and move in and out, and alternate with text to tell this mysterious, breathtaking, and riveting tale. Winner of the 2008 Caldecott Medal. (2008 Caldecott Medal Winner)

This spy history features cool gadgets and the stories of famous spies, as well as the fictional spies we know through movies and books.

Though this book is more for budding detectives than budding spies, it has many of the same appealing factors—listening, clue-gathering, and crime-solving. A classic that appeals to elementary-school students, this is also fun for read-alouds.

Bovine buddies Minnie and Moo are getting ready for their farmer’s birthday. They give him their last cream puff — leaving it in his slipper…and the sweater they’ve made seems to be haunted! And where is Elvis the rooster? Nothing could be grosser than stepping into a cream puff or wearing a sweater that talks, but it sure makes a funny tale!

The Flint Future Detectives are back for another wacky adventure in which the dog owned by Steven’s friend, Russell (first introduced in Mr. Chickee’s Funny Money) inadvertently launches an out-of-this-world series of events. Readers will see the satire in this improbable, funny, and fast-reading novel.

Could it be real? A quadrillion dollar bill? In this funny, fast-paced tall tale, nine-year-old Steven, helper and friend of his blind neighbor, Mr. Chickee, solves the mystery of this strange money.

In the tiny Welsh town at the foot of a mountain, nothing much happens — until one day, several strange cars stop by Dylan’s family’s service station on their way to the abandoned mine.

When their regular teacher is out, a seemingly forgetful substitute takes over for the day. But has Mr. Baker really lost the homework and his coat or is there a mystery afoot? Once again, Cam’s amazing memory and detecting skills are used successfully to solve the matter – and engage young readers.

A theft occurs when the governor – a Presidential candidate escorted by the Secret Service – visits Cam’s school to dedicate the new library. Cam and her friend Eric set out to solve the mystery of the missing pearls, recognizing those who help along the way.

Jeffrey Bones narrates this easy-to-read mystery that begins with his preparation for his grandfather’s birthday celebration, introduces a lost present, and ultimately moves to a satisfying resolution. New readers will appreciate the textual and visual clues which allow them to solve the mystery along with young Bones.

Cam Jansen, girl detective with a photographic memory, uses a beach umbrella to find her mother again. But something is different when she and her friend, Eric, return. Readers will join Cam as she closely looks for clues and uses reasoning for the inevitable and satisfying reunion.

Three pairs of siblings, sent to a summer camp that helps brothers and sisters get along, must unite to overcome an adversary at Camp Happy Harmony. The mystery unfolds through letters, memos, Post-It notes, and delightful illustrations in this offbeat story with puzzle-like appeal.

Jackie and his faithful dog embark on an adventure to retrieve Jackie’s lost shadow from a sinister foe, the Shadow Snatcher. Advice from Mr. Socrates, the smartest guy alive and Jackie’s neighbor is, of course, invaluable. The black/white panels augment the melodrama of this tale with a distinctly old-fashioned feel.

Four orphaned children, Jessie, Henry, Violet and Benny, make a home for themselves in an abandoned red boxcar — that is, until they find they need a caring adult. This is the first in the gentle, ever-popular, now classic mystery series. Now more than 60 years since it was published, the story of four orphans who make their home in an old railroad car comes to life again.

This spiral-bound book opens like a detective’s pad, holding the insight, advice, humor, and recipes of elementary-aged gecko sleuth, Chet. With comments inserted by Chet’s mockingbird friend Natalie, this cheeky, funny, pun-filled pad-folio can be used by itself, but may also lead young readers to other Chet Gecko mystery novels.

Ivan Itch finds friendship as well as Arthur Bobowicz’s 266-pound chicken in this hilarious adventure which started in Hoboken Chicken Emergency. The slapstick humor resumes in The Artsy Smartsy Club in which art enlivens an otherwise dull Hoboken summer for Ivan, Bruno Ugg, Loretta Fischetti, and, of course, Henrietta.

Ace Lacewing — whose business is bad bugs — narrates the saga of how he and his trusty sidekick and girlfriend foil the plot to overturn Queenie Bee. The exaggerated illustrations combine with staccato, pun-filled language to create this funny parody of detective stories.