The Case of the Missing Spot (Nancy Spector: Monster Detective, Book 1)

Written by Stephen W. Martin

Illustrated by Linh Pham

Algonquin Young Readers

978-1-6437-5065-1

208 pp.

Ages 7-11

September 2024

 

A lost pet is a frightening and heartbreaking experience for many a fur parent but what if the pet is an invisible dog? Who is going to help the Invisible Man a.k.a. Professor Griffin find Spot, his invisible eight-year-old Border Collie who loves bacon? It's going to be Nancy Spector of the Monster Detective Agency.

From The Case of the Missing Spot, written by Stephen W. Martin, illustrated by Linh Pham

Nancy and her dog Jinx, who reluctantly accompanies her but will do anything for a belly scratch, start their search at the Professor's house. Except for Jinx developing a case of relentless sneezing, accompanied by copious amounts of snot, they find nothing and head to Spot's doghouse. There they discover an escape tunnel which leads to a cavern of snarly rock-like creatures and then above ground where they follow clues like a body print in wet cement–no paw prints because, of course, Spot is invisible–left by Eugene the vampire and visit Melvin's Diner where they hatch "Nancy's super awesome hot dog trap plan."

From The Case of the Missing Spot, written by Stephen W. Martin, illustrated by Linh Pham

But their trap doesn't work, and it takes more encounters with monsters and following more clues before they discover a vengeful plot and a new nemesis for Nancy but also the reunion of the Invisible Man and his Spot.

From The Case of the Missing Spot, written by Stephen W. Martin, illustrated by Linh Pham

Stephen W. Martin and Linh Pham take middle grade readers into another world–actually an island in the Atlantic Ocean–where monsters reside and the supernatural is the norm. Yet, they've made their characters playful and different. From the dragon-like monster who chows down on everything but denies eating Spot since he doesn't eat anything with fur, and Hank the two-headed rainbow-feathered bird, to Eugene's grandmother who uses bones as hairpins for her curlers, and of course, Nancy and Jinx, the characters in The Case of the Missing Spot are a little wacky with just a smidgeon of creepily weird and a whole lot of fun. And as they partake in the search for Spot, whether by design or by encounter, they keep the investigation zany and yet fruitful. 

 

Canadian-born Stephen W. Martin, a screenwriter as well as children's book author, gives young readers a little bit of everything, ensuring entertainment for them either through humour or fantasy. The humour comes by way of the characters themselves, especially via adorable Jinx, while the story is the fantasy. Readers will witness Nancy and her fellow investigators flying on Hank and a waitress with four arms, as well all manner of flamboyant monsters driving flashy cars. Everything is bold and brash and monstrously splashy in setting, characters, clothing, and more. Vancouver's Linh Pham gives this graphic novel the action and the intensity to accompany Stephen W. Martin's investigative adventure, collaborating with him to create a world like no other.

Since The Case of the Missing Spot is labelled as Book 1 in the Nancy Spector: Monster Detective series, I think we'll have more adventures and laughs coming from the eight-year-old detective and her talking dog. And since the map of their setting includes some locations not yet introduced, like the Cloud Sauna, the Never Rainbow, the Mermaid Cave, and Ice Horns, I think there will be more surprises and hoopla for Nancy and Jinx and their many acquaintances.

People Are My Favorite Places

 

Written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

978-0-316424660

40 pp.

Ages 4-9

January 2024 

While we are still living with a pandemic, we are no longer subjected to lockdowns and the isolation that came with them. For many, the inability to go places had more to do with not seeing people: family, friends, and newly-met acquaintances. As she did in her earlier picture books Ping and Spark, Ani Castillo shares an important message about appreciating those who are part of our lives, whether we know them or not. 

From People Are My Favorite Places, written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

Although a young girl recognizes all the things which she can no longer do or see when "I was stuck in my room, all alone, forever and ever," she realizes that it's the people involved in those activities that she really misses. Visiting places like her grandparents' house or the movie theatre or travelling is not about the place but the people with whom she spends time.

From People Are My Favorite Places, written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

She recognizes that there are a lot of people she knows and missed, from her piano teacher to her friends and the locals she meets when travelling. It's all the "sweet, lovely people who were once there with me" with whom she laughed, ate noodles, chatted, held hands, and more. And she recognizes the people she missed came in all shapes, colours, ages, and textures, but she missed them all for their touch, their smell, their warmth and so much more.

From People Are My Favorite Places, written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

But most of all, she realizes that she had learned an important lesson during that time:

Because now

I see clearly

that the landscape, the place

most precious to me

is the world inside someone

I love

very dearly.

From People Are My Favorite Places, written and illustrated by Ani Castillo

The innocence of the child in expressing how she feels will be very familiar to children who missed out on a lot of things during lockdowns, from schooling, and family visits, to travel and socializing. They will all remember how isolated they felt and how much they craved being somewhere other than their rooms or their homes. But this child has the insight to realize it wasn't just being someplace, it was being with someone that made it all that it was: rich in experience, embracing in affection, uniting in companionship. That insightful innocence comes through in Ani Castillo's artwork. Using black coloured pencil, watercolour, and gouache, Ani Castillo makes us see every one of those people who are the landscape of this child's life.  There are her peers, her teachers, her family, and those people that she might meet when travelling. Known or unknown, these people are what make those places vibrant and significant.

Though I worry that too many people have forgotten what it was like to be without the people in their lives, I hope that People Are My Favorite Places will remind them so that we don't have to go through further isolation such as lockdowns to appreciate the magnitude of their contributions to the fabric of our lives. They take our landscapes from barren to lush and vibrant, and even if we don't want to partake in that vibrancy every moment, knowing that we can reach out to it any time is important.

The Tallest Tree House

Written and illustrated by Elly MacKay

Running Press Kids

978-0-7624-6299-5

32 pp.

Ages 4-8

April 2019

Mip, the red mushroom-capped fairy, is a true kinesthete. She's always on the move, singing, flying and building. Her impetuousness has her challenging Pip, her book-loving, contemplative fairy friend to a tree house race after she sees him reading a book on architecture.

From The Tallest Tree House by Elly MacKay

Mip is all at it immediately, determined to make the tallest tree house ever and by sundown. Pip, on the other hand, sits on his rock among the Trillium, Erythronium and Aquilegia, and plans his build with precision and thoughtfulness.

From The Tallest Tree House by Elly MacKay

Slowly the two tree houses start to take shape, as Mip frantically and rather haphazardly builds and builds while Pip slowly but methodically creates his own.

From The Tallest Tree House by Elly MacKay

When "Gusts of wind send sprays of mist over the rocks" and "The leaves began to dance," Pip suggests Mip secure her tower. Of course Mip sees this as a ploy to slow her down and continues building. But when the wind and rain topple her tower into Pip's tree house and traps his wing, Mip comes to the rescue. Then, after the storm has passed, the two work together on a new tree house that incorporates both their structures into "a winning piece of architecture."

As her website's name and Twitter handle can attest, Elly MacKay truly creates theatre in the clouds. Through a laborious process that may appear to be like play–see full details at her website here–Elly MacKay blends inked figures and other structures cut from paper into a theatre in which she can manipulate the layers and lighting. It's a stunning blend of two-dimensional creations with three dimensions. Children are fascinated by the textures that come from her artwork and have been charmed by it in her picture books from If You Hold a Seed (Running Press, 2013) to her latter works including Butterfly Park (Running Press, 2015) and Red Sky at Night (Tundra, 2018). Couple that art with fairies and a competition that transforms into cooperation and partnership and The Tallest Tree House becomes a winner for all readers.

From The Tallest Tree House by Elly MacKay

36 Questions That Changed My Mind About You

Written by Vicki Grant

Running Press Teens

978-0-7624-6318-3

288 pp.

Ages 13+

October 2017

This is a love story.  It's the story of eighteen-year-old Hildy meeting nineteen-year-old Paul–though they're supposed to refer to themselves as generic Betty and Bob–as participants in a university research project to determine whether the asking of 36 questions could facilitate personal closeness that might result in a relationship.  Although the two teens come into the study from different perspectives, where they end up is heart-warming with a final scene right out of a Hollywood romantic comedy. (Yes, the book would make a GREAT film.)

Hildy is a bit of a mess.  She seems to be a little clumsy and does a whole lot of babbling though it's clear she is bright and astute and interesting.  But she describes herself at the onset of the study as someone who has

"...a lot of stuff happening in my life right now.  My own fault, of course.  Big mouth.  Tunnel vision.  Faulty social radar." (pg. 14)

That statement is very telling.  Without revealing all there is about her situation, Hildy suggests a crisis in her family, for which she is willing to take blame, but what is going on with younger brother Gabe, ER doctor mom Amy, and school principal and drama coach dad Greg, is only revealed in dribs and drabs through the context of Hildy's get-togethers with friends as well as in her meetings with Paul a.k.a. Bob Somebody both in person and online. (They have to extend their session beyond the original hour needed after she reacts to some comments he makes and she throws a puffer fish at him.)

Paul/Bob is more of a closed book.  When he's supposed tell the details of his life in four minutes (that's Question 11), Hildy assesses his answer as,

"That was a ten-second cover-up of a thirty-six-part docudrama.  What you didn't say was way more interesting than what you actually said." (pg. 62)

He gives very little away about himself and blankets most of his answers with an attitude Hildy doesn't appreciate. He does reveal his drawing ability in his endless doodling–mostly of a hand, Kong the puffer fish whom he adopts temporarily, and Hildy–and a love of drumming.  But Paul/Bob just wants to get this over with and collect his $40.

As the questions become more intimate and revealing, Hildy and Paul share more about themselves and seesaw between anger, frustration, appreciation and affection.  But when Hildy stands Paul up and can't locate him to try to make things right, it looks like the project and their budding friendship might all be in jeopardy.

Readers are going to fall in love with Hildy and Paul. They are so not perfect, separately and together.   They are masses of weaknesses and missteps especially when dealing with others and it's a wonder they ever got to the place where they'd want to do the psych study.  But, along with their weaknesses, they are strong and courageous and compassionate.  And yet, the two are infinitely different.  Still, Vicki Grant doesn't let that stand in the way of a great love story, one in which the complicated Hildy and the casual Paul can see beyond their frailties and foibles and expose themselves to possible happiness that no questions could have predicted. It is impossible not to laugh with them and laugh at them when you read their dialogue i.e., discussions based on the 36 scripted questions.

Question 10

Paul: If you could change anything about the way you were raised, what would it be?

Hildy: I wish I hadn't been kept in the dark so much.

Paul: Explains why you're so pale.        (pg. 53)

I know this may be a spoiler but I don't want readers to worry that Hildy and Paul might never get together.  Rest assured that Vicki Grant, with her trademark humour, will bring the two teens to completing their psych study obligation and, better yet, to undertaking a new, more personal, venture on their own, with or without Kong in tow. And it only took 36 questions.

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