Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation [Hardcover]

Mark Teague (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Ike LaRue--the devilish dog hero of Mark Teague's Book Sense Book of the Year, Dear Mrs. LaRue--goes from obedience school dropout to shrewd sleuth in this exceedingly funny sequel.

As if obedience school wasn't bad enough, Ike now finds himself in jail--wrongly accused (of course!) of terrorizing the Hibbins' cats & stealing their cat treats. Once again, he pleads his case to Mrs LaRue, who's vacationing in France, but to no avail. When a string of canary burglaries stalls the Snort City Police force's investigation--and reveals their crime-solving ineptitude--Ike flees custody and takes matters into his own paws. Expect more mad-cap comedy in Ike's daring escapades (real and imagined), as well as ingenious split-screen visuals from the incomparable Mark Teague.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3–As in Dear Mrs. LaRue (Scholastic, 2002), "local dog" Ike LaRue tells his story through a series of misleading letters to his owner. When two neighborhood cats disappear, the pup winds up a jailed suspect. A black-and-white illustration depicts his pitiful plight as he would like Mrs. LaRue to imagine it–sadly blowing on a harmonica in jail. The real situation, in which he shares doughnuts and coffee with a friendly police officer, is revealed in a color illustration on the same spread. This type of juxtaposition continues as Ike slips out to track down the cats on his own. Pictures reveal that the tireless legwork he describes to his owner is actually time spent relaxing in a luxury hotel. Despite his life of ease, the pooch finally does find the missing felines, and he becomes a hero. The contrast between the melodrama of Ike's imagined world and the comfort of his true experiences should elicit many smiles. The placement of the color and black-and-white scenes varies with each spread, which helps prevent the pictorial construct from being predictable or repetitive. Teague's visual characterizations of animals and people are also a treat. Ike displays a variety of emotions and attitudes, often subtly conveyed by posture, facial expression, or even just the tilt of an eyebrow. The cat-bashing references in the dog's letters add another touch of humor to this satisfying epistolary tale.–Steven Engelfried, Beaverton City Library, OR
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 3. In Teague's sequel to Dear Mrs. LaRue (2002), a pair of cats hungry for canary flesh have escaped their apartment and left Ike holding the bag--a bag of incriminating cat treats. "Apparently it is easier for some people to blame a dog than to solve a crime," sniffs the offended Ike in a letter to his vacationing owner. As in the first book, children can tease apart truth from exaggeration by interpolating among the letters, the color scenes of reality, and Ike's gumshoe fantasies, cleverly rendered in black and white. It turns out that the "daring escape" from police custody is really a casual leave-taking ("I'm sure he'll come back when he gets hungry," says the officer in charge); his nighttime investigations are conducted from the comfort of a posh hotel room. The noir-inspired premise drifts farther from doggy reality than the first book's, but children will get a thrill out of piecing together the mystery alongside the wily, self-serving, yet eminently lovable Ike. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press (September 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439458684
• ISBN-13: 978-0439458689
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,029 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fun sequel, September 28, 2004

By 

Camille "at the BookMoot!" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation (Hardcover)

In Dear Mrs. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School, 2002, Ike the dog wrote plaintive letters describing his life "behind bars." He hopes his owner, Mrs. LaRue, will come to rescue him from obedience school. The wonderful humor came from the clever story and illustrations. The reader can compare colorful reality with Ike's black and white point of view.

In his new book Ike is writing letters to Mrs. LaRue again while she is on vacation in Europe. This time he is a suspect in the disappearance of the Hibbins cats. Feeling completely misjudged, Ike mails his owner pleas and updates from the police station where he has been taken into custody. Forced to flee and on the lam, he attempts to solve the mystery of the cats' disappearance as well as a series of canary burglaries. Once again the detailed illustrations and articles from the Snort City Register/Gazette hold the key to the story and the laughs. This book is a very entertaining sequel. This is a must-read for fans of Ike!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Book Review From a Spiritridge Third Grader, March 26, 2007

By 

Sara B. Richardson (Bellevue, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation (Hardcover)

I read this jail breaking book called Detective LaRue. Two cats ran away from their home and a dog named Ike gets blamed. There is a jumbo sized dilemma but I can't tell you. The police are working on another case so Ike takes it into his own hand, I mean paw. You have to read the rest to find out what happens.

I like this book because Ike dreams funny things like that he is in jail when he was with a nice police.

I recommend this book to anyone because it is funny and good.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars JUST AS FUNNY AND INSIGHTFUL AS THE FIRST, November 13, 2010

By 

D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation (Hardcover)

If you are like me, after reading Dear Mrs. La Rue: Letters From Obedience School, where Ike LaRue , our manipulative dog friend keeps his owner, Mrs. LaRue informed of his trials and tribulations while being locked up in obedience school, you had to wonder what happened to this spoiled, bright, and tale telling dog after his return home.

Well in this sequel we find the immediate answer. Ike, the pampered pooch is accused in the disappearance of the two neighbor cats and is arrested as he is found in the local park with an empty bag of cat treats hanging from his mouth.

The author has used the same techniques that he used in his first book; actually a combination of techniques. First the have the most untruthful letters Ike writes to his owner as she is vacationing in Europe. These letters are half truths, full blown exaggerations, and all put Ike's unique "spin" on reality. This is coupled with color paintings along with black and white paintings. Now Ike, in his first letter to Mrs. LaRue tells her to ignore the color pictures as they are false and complete police propaganda to show him in a bad light...she should only judge him by the back and white pictures.

The author then gives us, on each page, Ike's letters, a color painting of reality and a black and white picture of Ike's spin and take as a contrast. An example of this is near the front of the book where we find our canine criminal setting in the police station eating donuts, drinking coffee, writing his letters and playing cards with the police, which is contrasted by the black and white picture (in Ike's mind and letter) of him setting is a filthy dungeon cell with a rat as he plays a harmonica and drinks from a tin cup.

Ike of course escapes the clutches of the evil police and begins a journey through the city to clear his "good name." He knows the cats are evil and is out to prove it once and for all. Mix this with the mysterious plague of missing birds in the city, and Ike finds he has his hands full....I mean paws.

These books; this book, is absolutely hilarious. Reading the letters the dog writes and comparing them to the reality of the situation is an absolute hoot.

Not only is the text funny, but the illustrations are true gems. The facial expression of the cats in this work alone are worth the read. Kids love these stories of Ike LaRue, but I must say that I have yet to meet an adult that did not like them just as well as the child. If you are a dog lover then this and the other books in the series are almost a must. Anyone who has ever been owned by a dog and manipulated by a dog, will instantly recognize there own pet on these pages.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks