From Publishers Weekly
This tale of an investigator who tracks down an elusive chameleon, at the request of a lizard in distress, features bold pastel illustrations. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Review
Humorously bold illustrations perfectly complement the tongue-in-check teling of this exciting story.
American Bookseller, "Pick of the Lists" --AMERICAN BOOKSELLER, Pick of the Lists, August 1995
Ace detective Private I. Guana is on the case looking for the missing Leon (a chameleon). Written in a narrative style reminiscent of early detective films and television shows, this is a fun readaloud to be enjoyed by both younger and older listeners. Humorously bold illustrations perfectly complement the tongue-in-cheek telling of this exciting story.
--INSTRUCTOR MAGAZINE
Hard-boiled American mysteries may not boast the genteel qualities of their mannered British counterparts, but they have their own oddball charm, especially when the investigator is a gumshoe like Private I. Guana. Drawing inspiration from tough guy detectives such as Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade, this trench coat-clad iguana is hired by Liz Lizard to find her missing husband, Leon. He discovers Leon, disguised as Camille, singing with the Gila Girls, the house band at the slimy Lizard Lounge. The tone is tongue-in-cheek; the dark pastel illustrations wonderfully brooding; and even the typerwriter-like typeface puts you in the mood for mystery. There are suggestions for possible sequels as I. Guana ponders his next case. Have children make up and write these sequels or think up new cases for Private I. Guana to solve.
--SEATTLE POST-INTELIGENCER, December 1995
In this witty sendup of hard-boiled fiction, a reptilian sleuth tracks the missing Leon the chameleon. "By the way," I. Guana asks his concerned client, "what color was he when you last saw him?" Full of word play, with squiggly, cartoonish pictures and an archaic typeface known as "manual typewriter."
