Mystery books for 3rd graders
Lizard Music
by: Daniel Manus Pinkwater - (Dodd, Mead, 1976) 144 pages.
Eleven-year-old Victor is up way past bedtime when he sees something very unusual on television: a band of giant lizards performing wild music! Night after night, Victor watches this same strange yet addictive show…that apparently doesn’t even exist.
Perfect for: Kids who like mysteries.
Find at your local library.
Shredderman: Secret Identity
by: Wendelin Van Draanen, illustrated by: Brian Briggs - (Random House, 2004) 144 pages.
Nolan is tired of Bubba Bixby’s bullying! When the kids receive an assignment to create a newspaper expose, Nolan thinks that this is the perfect chance to truly expose Bubba. After gathering some very compromising information, Nolan creates shredderman.com, a Web site that will shield his identity while fighting back against Bubba’s tyranny.
Perfect for: Kids who like mysteries.
Find at your local library.
Freddy the Detective
by: Walter R. Brooks, illustrated by: Kurt Wiese - (Alfred A. Knopf, 1932) 272 pages.
Originally published in 1932, Freddy the Detective is an overlooked classic. Freddy is a pig who finds his true calling when he finds a copy of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes in the barn one day. The witty and still very fresh vocabulary in which Freddy expresses himself is just delightful!
Perfect for: Kids who like mysteries.
Find at your local library.
Framed
by: Frank Cottrell Boyce - (HarperCollins Children's Books, 2006) 306 pages.
The story is told by a young boy who is endearingly naive and who understands less than the reader about what is really going on. He is missing a parent and doing the best he can with his limited understanding to make things better for everyone. And his well-meaning but clueless actions change not only his family, but his town. Dylan lives with his sisters and parents, and is the only boy in a small, rainy town in Wales. They run a small garage, the Snowdonia Oasis Auto Marvel, on the brink of insolvency. Dylan is obsessed with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as is Tom, the man who tried to rob them and whom they hire instead. Then a series of seemingly unrelated events starts to change things in their lives and community.
Perfect for: Kids who like mysteries.
Find at your local library.
Boy of a Thousand Faces
by: Brian Selznick - (Harper, 2000) 48 pages.
Ten-year-old Alonzo King is an expert about monster movies. He spends hours with Scotch tape and makeup trying to master his beloved monster faces in the mirror. When a mysterious beast is rumored to be stomping on flower beds and scratching up cars, Alonzo is called on for his monster expertise.
Perfect for: Kids who like mysteries.
Find at your local library.
Mariella Mystery series
by: Kate Pankhurst - (B.E.S. Publishing, 2014) 176 pages.
The hook: When your last name is 鈥淢ystery,鈥 of course you will be an excellent detective! Nine-year-old Mariella investigates benign, age-appropriate mysteries such as who is trying to sabotage the local baking contest. And like any good detective, she keeps track of clues in this super-secret notebook. This book is part of a series about a plucky girl sleuth and her friends, with funny sketches and tips that will engage reluctant or beginning readers.
Perfect for: Young sleuths and problem solvers.
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