Great Scott: It's a Mystery! for Fifth & Sixth Graders

Juvenile Fiction

• Abbott, Tony. The Postcard. 2008.
  While in Florida to help clean out his recently-deceased grandmother's house, Jason finds an old postcard which leads him on an adventure that blends figures from an old, unfinished detective story with his family's past.
  
• Anderson, Janet. The Last Treasure. 2003.
  Ellsworth leaves his father to visit the relatives he has never met and eventually joins forces with Jess, his distant cousin, to uncover family secrets and search for their ancestor's hidden treasure.
  
• Avi. The Seer of Shadows. 2008.
  In New York City in 1872, 14-year-old Horace, a photographer's apprentice, becomes entangled in a plot to create fraudulent spirit photographs, but when Horace accidentally frees the real ghost of a dead girl bent on revenge, his life takes a frightening turn.
  
• Balliett, Blue. The Calder Game. 2008.
  When Calder Pillay disappears from a remote English village-along with an Alexander Calder sculpture to which he has felt strangely drawn-his friends Petra and Tommy fly from Chicago to help his father find him. If you liked this book, check out Chasing Vermeer and The Wright 3.
  
• Beaty, Andrea. Cicada Summer. 2008.
  Lily mourns her brother, and has not spoken since the accident she feels she could have prevented, but the summer Tinny comes to town she is the only one who realizes Lily's secret.
  
• Broach, Elise. Shakespeare's Secret. 2005.
  Named after a character in a Shakespeare play, misfit sixth-grader Hero becomes interested in exploring this unusual connection because of a valuable diamond supposedly hidden in her new house, an intriguing neighbor and the unexpected attention of the most popular boy in school.
  
• Dowd, Siobhan. The London Eye Mystery. 2008.
  When Ted and Kat's cousin Salim disappears from the London Eye ferris wheel, the two siblings must work together-Ted with his brain that is "wired differently" and impatient Kat-to try to solve the mystery of what happened to Salim.
  
• Feinstein, John. Vanishing Act. 2006.
  Eighth-grade sports reporters Susan Carol and Stevie reunite at the U.S. Open tennis championships where they investigate the mysterious disappearance of a top Russian player.
  
• Hiaasen, Carl. Scat. 2009.
  Nick and his friend Marta decide to investigate when a mysterious fire starts near a Florida wildlife preserve and an unpopular teacher goes missing.
  
• Lanthier, Jennifer. The Mystery of the Martello Tower. 2008.
  In their attempts to solve the mystery of their father's disappearance, Hazel and her brother Ned find themselves involved with a trio of art thieves and uncover some family secrets.
  
• Pearson, Ridley. Steel Trapp: the Challenge. 2008.
  On a train trip to enter his invention in the National Science Competition in Washington, D.C., 14-year-old Steven "Steel" Trapp, possessor of a remarkable photographic memory, becomes embroiled in an international plot of kidnapping and bribery that may have links to terrorists.
  
• Raskin, Ellen. The Westing Game. 1978.
  The mysterious death of an eccentric millionaire brings together an unlikely assortment of heirs who must uncover the circumstances of his death before they can claim their inheritance.
  
• Selzer, Adam. I Put a Spell on You: From the Files of Chrissie Woodward, Spelling Bee Detective. 2008.
  A tiny town called Preston is usually pretty quiet, until the all-school spelling bee. Chrissie, the school detective, has found alarming evidence that the school spelling bee is being sabotaged.
  
• Stanley, Diane. The Mysterious Case of the Allbright Academy. 2008.
  Eighth-grader Franny and her friends investigate why most of the students at their exclusive boarding school are brilliant, beautiful and perfectly behaved.
  
• Stewart, Paul. Curse of the Night Wolf. 2008.
  Soon after Victorian messenger Barnaby Grimes is attacked by a huge beast while crossing London's rooftops, he becomes entangled in a mystery involving patent medicine, impoverished patients and very expensive furs.
  
• Stewart, Trenton Lee. The Mysterious Benedict Society. 2007.
  After passing a series of mind-bending tests, four children are selected for a secret mission that requires them to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where the only rule is that there are no rules.
  
• Wright, Betty Ren. The Dollhouse Murders. 1983.
  A dollhouse filled with a ghostly light in the middle of the night and dolls that have moved from where she last left them lead Amy and her sister to unravel the mystery surrounding murders that took place years ago.
  

Series

• Allison, Jennifer. Gilda Joyce.
  Self-proclaimed psychic investigator Gilda Joyce investigates mysteries.
  
• Cavendish, Grace. Lady Grace Mysteries.
  Lady Grace's daybooks are an illuminating blend of court life, royal intrigue and historical details of the Elizabethan era. Life in the royal household is never dull, and one thing is certain: there will be many more adventures for Grace Cavendish, Her Majesty's Lady Pursuivant.
  
• Dixon, Franklin. Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers. (graphic novel)
  Detective brothers Frank and Joe Hardy solve all kinds of mysteries from a missing baby to a missing friend to an attempted murder.
  
• Horowitz, Anthony. Alex Rider.
  When his guardian dies in suspicious circumstances, Alex Rider finds his world turned upside down. Forcibly recruited into MI6, Alex has to take part in grueling SAS training exercises.
  
• Johns, Linda. Hannah West.
  Hannah West is artistic and full of street smarts-the perfect combination for a Seattle sleuth.
  
• Keene, Carolyn. Nancy Drew, Girl Detective. (graphic novel)
  Nancy Drew solves mysteries with the help of her friends, Bess and George.
  
• Springer, Nancy. Enola Holmes.
  Enola Holmes, much younger sister of detective Sherlock Holmes, uses disguises to unravel different mysteries.
  
• Thirty Nine. The 39 Clues.
  This mystery series centers around the Cahills-the most powerful family the world has ever known. The source of its power is a mystery that can only be unraveled by assembling 39 clues that have been hidden around the world throughout history.
  
• Van Draanen, Wendelin. Sammy Keyes.
  Fast-paced and funny, packed with menacing suspects and clever clues, the Sammy Keyes mysteries keep you guessing to the last riveting page.
  

revised Apr. 2009