The DollHouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright

The Dollhouse Murders is a chillingly good murder mystery for kids.

Twelve-year old Amy is tired of being responsible for her special (it doesn’t specify how, but she seems to have Asperger’s, but is high-function) sister Louann. She retreats to her Dad’s ancestral home to live with her Aunt Claire. In the attic, she finds a beautiful dollhouse that is a perfect replica of her great-grandparents’ house. Her Aunt Claire is distressed upon seeing it, but Amy is fascinated and comes up to the attic to see more of the dollhouse.

Strange things happen at the dollhouse — the dolls that represent her relatives are never where she leaves it, and seem to move about the dollhouse. Amy thinks the dolls are trying to tell her something, but Aunt Claire doesn’t believe her.

After some sleuthing at the local library, Amy finds out that her great-grandparents were murdered in the house. The dollhouse holds the key to solving the mystery, and Amy and Louann must work together to resolve the grisly family secret once and for all.

The novel has a good set of characters, a fast-paced narration, and several chapters that will send shivers down your spine. The subplot about families dealing with special children is great too :)

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My copy: (actually my sister’s) – an old paperback from the bargain bin at Book Sale

My rating: 4/5 stars

The Face on the Milk Carton by Caroline Cooney

The Face On the Milk Carton is a riveting thriller about a 15-year old girl, Janie Johnson, who lives in a well-off neighborhood with parents who love her. One day, she is idly looking at the back of a milk carton and comes across a picture of three year-old Jennie Spring, kidnapped twelve years ago. The heading reads, “Have you seen this child?”

Janie takes a look at the red pigtails and the polka-dot dress and a wave of recognition hits her. She has seen this child. In fact, she realizes that the face on the milk carton is hers.

Flashes of memories of her “other” family (the Springs) hit her, and as much as she loves her family, she cannot deny the conviction that she is Jennie Spring… Will she choose the family she has known and loved? But what about the family that has been deprived of her presence?

Surprisingly, it was a decent read, for P40 at the book sale. Now if only I can hunt down the three other sequels.

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My copy: put up for mooching last year, mass market paperback

My rating: 3/5 stars

Clue: 15 Whodunits to Solve in 15 Minutes by Vicki Cameron

I found this on the sale rack at National back in January, and it was screaming to be mine for only P95. Based on the popular game, Clue, this book is an anthology of short mysteries surrounding the death of Mr. Boddy (always the victim, of course) played out in different scenarios.

It’s great to see the game in action throughout the book, with all the characters brought to life. Mrs. White is the long-suffering matron housekeeper, Mrs. Peacock is the wealthy lady who’s inherited her numerous dead husbands’ estates; Ms. Scarlett is Mrs. Peacock’s flighty but foxy daughter; Rev. Green is the holier-than-thou crook who clearly doesn’t practice what he preaches; Professor Plum is the deadbeat intellectual who’s been laid off from his job at the museum; and Col. Mustard is the retired military man whose medals were never received out of any true valor.

And of course, Mr. Boddy manages to get himself killed every single time, by one of the usual suspects, with the usual weapons (knife, candlestick, rope, revolver, leadpipe, wrench).

I liked the idea of the book, and the quirky characters, but it leaves a lot more to be desired as a mystery anthology.

First off, the characters just kill Mr. Boddy out of whim. I mean, of course I’m not expecting a long, drawn-out motive, but well, all fifteen stories have the characters killing Mr. Boddy because he knows something about the murderer that’s not supposed to be out in the open, or something to that effect. And then when people discover the body, they’re all like, “Oh, he’s dead,” like it was the most normal thing in the world, and say “Let’s go have coffee” or some other inane remark.

The stories aren’t well-developed, and you really don’t end up solving the whodunit (other than randomly guessing at who the murderer is).The evidence presented to lead up to actually solving the whodunit is severely lacking, and when you read the solution, the story draws on pulling out unknown information out of thin air, and there you have it, you have a murderer.

Sigh, good whodunits are really hard to find.

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My copy: paperback, on my shelf

My rating: 2/5 stars

Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke

Dragon Rider is a fantasy novel featuring the quest of a dragon (Firedrake), a forest brownie (Sorrel), and a little boy (Ben), and the delightful assortment of characters they meet along the way. Firedrake, Ben, and Sorrel are off to the Himalayas to find the legendary Rim of Heaven, to seek a sanctuary for the colony of silver dragons that still exist in the world. The quest is thwarted by the evil Nettlebrand, an evil man-made golden dragon with an attitude problem and an army of spies, determined to destroy all silver dragons.

After reading Cornelia Funke’s The Thief Lord, I wanted to read Dragon Rider to find out if that was a fluke or if I really liked her style.

The verdict…

Dragon Rider is a bit lighter than The Thief Lord, perhaps because of its whimsy. Even the villains have some sort of entertainment value, and the dragon lore isn’t as complicated as say, Anne McCaffrey’s or even Christopher Paolini’s.

The characters are lovable, if not well-rounded. I think Funke kept in mind that kids can’t be overburdened with too much lore The dragons are whimsical, and totally uncomplicated. They’re just nice creatures who live on moonlight and seek to co-exist peacefully and anonymously on the earth. Ben is the simple boy with a grand mission, Sorrel is the feisty sidekick, and they meet a delightful band of characters along the way.

I think I’d have to say though, that The Thief Lord’s translation (Cornelia Funke writes in German) was better. I think there was a bit (just a bit) of a disjointedness in Dragon Rider that makes me think there were some things lost in translation.

It’s really a light-hearted book, with talking animals, lovable characters, a romp around the world, and Funke’s specialty: good, old-fashioned triumph of good versus evil. Yeah, the sort that makes you think the world is a much better place. It’s really great for kids, and well, it’s also a good pick-me-up for more jaded adults.

Cornelia Funke is certainly one of the better contemporary children’s book writers around, and her works have a classical feel to it that I rarely find in other children’s books.

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My copy: trade paperback upgraded into a hardcover, mooched from the US

My rating: 4/5 stars

The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith

I’ve been looking for this book for ages, and I temporarily lifted my book-buying moratorium because I chanced upon it at book sale (I love you guys, whoever’s behind the store, even though that beatrix potter book I’ve requested online from you still hasn’t been confirmed, and that was a whole year ago!)… Whee!

I discovered The Stinky Cheese Man and my love for Lane Smith when I was taking Illustration classes under Panch Alcaraz, when she lent me the book to use as a reference for my thesis. I’ve been looking for it for three years now (heartbroken at the INKmas party, when someone turned it in as an exchange gift, and it missed me by a couple of persons during the passing), and I finally have it! Yehey!

To those not familiar with the book, it’s an irreverent parody of fairy tales, one of the best examples of post-modern children’s books today, deconstructing not only the fairy tale but the concept of a book as well. It’s funny in a way both kids and grownups can enjoy (Chickoy and I had a fun time reading it together!), no matter how many times you read it.

I love it love it love it!

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My copy: hardcover with dust jacket, from Book Sale

My rating: 5/5 stars