Customer Reviews

The Mystery of Merlin and the Gruesome Ghost (Humpty Dumpty, Jr., Hardboiled Detective)

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Humpty Dumpty Jr: Hardboiled Detective: The Mystery of Merlin and the Gruesome Ghost

Wow! What a wonderful chapter book for a young reader! A "reluctant" reader will be hooked immediately and want to read more. A gifted child will be challenged by the cleverly written witty mystery. When opening the book one notices the larger sized print, numerous detailed illustrations (at least one for every two pages), and short chapters. That alone is a motivator for young readers.

Nate Evans' book truly inspires parents and children to read together, laugh together and discuss together. The great mix of creative characters and literary characters are expertly woven into a suspenseful mystery.

The text is easily read, but often uses vocabulary that will build the reader's own vocabulary. Depending on the age of the reader, the meaning of the words can be determined through context reading, or can be looked up in the dictionary.

My granddaughter, Katie, age 11, loves chapter books and funny books. While reading Humpty Dumpty Jr: Hardboiled Detective: The Mystery of Merlin and the Gruesome Ghost, she'd go into laughter, and then have to share it with me so we could laugh together. Sometimes it was a witty picture, sometimes it was a witty phrase that she shared. The event that caused us both to laugh the most was Humptpy Dumpty Jr's magic wand.

Reviewed by Lorraine Peoples, author of You Can Teach Someone to Read; A How-To Book for Friends, Parents and Teachers

The Mystery of Merlin and the Gruesome Ghost is a follow up to the first book in the series, The Case of the Fiendish Flapjack Flop. Once again, we are taken along for a mystery ride with Humpty and his sidekick, Rat. In this installment, however, we are joined by the lovely Princess Lily who has enlisted the help of Humpty and Rat to figure out who the ghost that eats magic, at Merlin's Institute for the Knowledge of Everything, is.

I can honestly say that boys will love this series. That's not to say that girls will not, but with the "grossness" factor and wise cracks, this is sure to capture the attention of young boys. My daughter, who is 6, and I both love these books and simply cannot wait for the 3rd one to come out May of 2009. I can say that I will be purchasing some of these for my nephews for Christmas, also. The illustrations are wonderful - you have to be sure to really look at the pictures to see if you can spot the "spoofs" on well known authors and book titles, etc. That also adds great fun to the books.

I found The Mystery of Merlin and the Gruesome Ghost to be just as much fun and full of laugh out loud commentary as the first book. I highly recommend this series for children and can't think of a better way to really grab a child's attention and expand (or begin) their love of reading.

*overall rating: 4.5/5

Gold Star Award Winner!

Humpty Dumpty, Jr., Hardboiled Detective, has cracked a lot of tough cases in his life as an award-winning crime solver. But still, his toughest challenge yet is getting his new assistant, Rat, to go to school.

One day, while having the same old argument, a young girl about Rat's age, who calls herself Princess Lily, appears on their doorstep. She tells them that her school--Merlin's Institute for the Knowledge of Everything--is being haunted by a ghost in glowing armor. Her father, Prince Balto, fought the ghost last night, and now he's trapped in a deep sleep. Lily says that she wants to hire Humpty to solve the mystery.

Humpty and Rat follow Lily back to her school, which is actually Merlin's castle, transported all the way from England. After some trouble getting past the guards, the group barges into Merlin's office, where Merlin denies all of Lily's claims.

Out of ideas, Humpty tells Merlin that they've come to enroll Rat in the school. Merlin says no, absolutely not, since the boy is obviously not royalty. But then, the legendary sword of King Arthur, which Merlin keeps in his office to await the return of the king, begins to glow. Although Rat cannot draw the sword from its stone prison, Merlin is now convinced that Rat must be the reincarnated King Arthur!

Full of strange occurrences, mystical history, and a surprise ending that puts a new spin on the King Arthur legend, this book is for any child who loves to laugh. The whacky situations and hysterical illustrations definitely make this egg-cellent series one that you will not want to miss!

Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose

I previewed this book before I read it to my kindergarten class. I laughed out loud at least twice in every chapter! The author's humor was very clever and kid-friendly. I was unsure that my students would understand the humor, but they did. They were begging for me to read another chapter each day. My students could easily retell the story and couldn't wait to have the next book in the series read to them!

My daughters giggled at the humor and gasped at the surprises while we read these marvelous new books together! The Evans/Evans illustration team is remarkable. Keep these books coming!

My nephew loves these books! We have a great time reading them and can't wait for new ones.

Another egg-celent romp through New Yolk City with Dectective Dumpy Jr., and his side-kick, Rat. Scrambled with messy magic, I throughly enjoyed both the tale, and Vince Evans' delightful illustrations!