POISONED BY HER FATHER? NO WAY!

Growing up in a tough apartment complex without money means you have to learn how to take care of yourself and do things for yourself.  When Ruby's father becomes a prime suspect in the death of the famous forensic scientist he works for, she and her best friend Rex need to investigate the murder before her father is arrested.  They need help, and help comes from an unlikely recluse, the Window Lady, who lives on the ninth floor.  

Poison Most Vial:  A Mystery by Benedict Carey is a fast pace who dunnit mystery for mystery and CSI lovers from 6th-and up. 

A TIME TRAVELING HOUSE WITH BASEBALL INCLUDED

A review of 13 Hangmen by Art Corriveau from Mr. B at the Grandview Branch of GPL.

Here’s a novel about baseball, time travel, murder, and history. Oh, and not just regular Dan Gutman baseball and trading card time travel, but the kind based on the theory that all of life past and present is happening all at once in parallel universes. The events at 13 Hangmen Court, Boston, are triggered by the death of amateur detective Tony’s great uncle, Zio Angelo. As his 13th birthday approaches, Tony inherits Zio Angelo’s 200 year old decaying house with the stipulation he sleep in Zio Angelo’s old bedroom. The room, Tony discovers, is a portal to parallel universes.

As 13-year-old boys appear and disappear, it becomes apparent to Tony that all the boys are living in the room at the same time, but in their own universes. The 13-year old boys include Tony; his great-uncle Zio Angelo who at 13 is friends with rookie Red Sox player Ted Williams; a run-away slave on the Underground Railroad; Paul Revere’s silversmith apprentice, and others. Together, as the portal allows, they solve a 200 year old mystery, save the house from demolition by the health and safety department, and solve the murder of Zio Angelo.

This well written, well researched, multi-leveled historical adventure may not be for every 13-year-old, but those willing to tackle it will not be disappointed. Maybe someone will send a copy to Tim Burton – it’s ripe for a film version. 

For readers in grades 6th- and older.   

WILD WEST

From Mr. B, Children's Librarian at the Grandview Branch Library

The Case of the Deadly Desperados

By Caroline Lawrence

In “The Case of the Deadly Desperados” [Western Mysteries, Book 1], Sid Fleishman-like charm meets modern sensibilities as 12 year-old half-breed P.K. Pinkerton tracks down his step-parents’ murderers and the silver mine deed they were trying to steal. Along the way, P.K. (who may or may not be the son or nephew of a more famous Pinkerton) hides-out in an opium den disguised as a Chinese boy (aka “a Celestial”); disguises himself as a girl to escape the murders only to run into reporter Samuel Clemens; and learns to read the body language of feet from a professional gambler. Confused? Exactly what author Caroline Lawrence hopes you will be. She lets P.K. fill in the details in his own words as he describes the danger, greed, and culture of Virginia City, silver mining, and the great Comstock Lode with warmth, humor, and a dash of innocence.

This historical tale is not for the faint-hearted, but should please many a 6-9^th grade adventure fan whether or not assigned to read “historical fiction.”