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Oct 11, 2009

(NS) Mary rated it:

Description from inside book flap:
"A is for author.... Dink writes to his favorite author, mystery writer Wallis Wallace, and invites him to visit Green Lawn. To Dink's amazement, Wallace says he'll come! But when the big day arrives, Wallace is nowhere to be found. The police think he just missed his plane, but Dink suspects foul play. It's up to Dink and his two best friends, Josh and Ruth Rose, to find the famous writer--before it's too late! "

This book, from the More...

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Feb 03, 2010

Ch_beverlyatwood rated it:

Title: The Absent Author (part of the A to Z Mysteries)
Author: Ron Roy
Illustrator: John Steven Gurney
Publisher: Random House
Year originally published: 1997
Translator (if applicable):
Approximate Interest Level/Reading Level: Ages 5-8
Format (picture book, audio book, book read online, chapter book/novel, graphic novel): Chapter Book
Rating system: ****
Brief summary: Dink Duncan and his two friends investigate the apparent kidnapping of famous More...

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Sep 09, 2011

Kaela rated it:

I loved this book! it was the first book ive read in the series, but this book told me to keep reading the books in the series, A-Z Mysteries! The suspense in this just realed me in. How Dink and his friends used the authors work that he writes in his own stories to find him just amazed me! The more I read this genre, I learn more, and more of how to solve one of my own mysteries (you know, if I ever find one)! But then when I think about it, I could never make all the peices fall into place li More...

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Mar 12, 2011

Tate rated it:

This is a GREAT series of books. Reminds me of a cross between Nancy Drew and Jigsaw Jones. The length was *really* intimidating for Tate at first -- he practically cried when I told him he would be reading this on his own. But we told him he only had to read a few pages a night and it didn't matter how long it took him to finish the book. Once he got into the story, he would willingly read it for about 20 minutes each night. He finished in about a week. It's a good story about a group of sc More...

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Aug 01, 2009

Cynthia rated it:

This is the first book in a series of mysteries all beginning with a different letter of the alphabet. Some are definitely more mysterious than others, but my boys (ages 6 and almost 4) just eat them up. Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose are three friends living in the small town of Green Lawn who seem to find adventure after adventure. The mysteries are simple enough that even young readers can pick up clues and begin to put the pieces together themselves. I think this will be a series that we will More...

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Aug 10, 2011

Heather rated it:

I received five of the books in this series as a "prize" during a conference I attended a year or so ago. I began reading them with my son this summer, and today he asked me to take him to the library to see if they had any of the others in the series.
Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose are fun characters who have amazing adventures together. In this first novel, their favorite author is missing in action. They follow clues to figure out the mystery. It's sort of a "modern day" More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Oct 11, 2009

(NS)Jordyn rated it:

This book series is perfect for 2nd and 3rd grade. The storyline is simple enough for readers that are still focusing some of the time on decoding. The main character, Dink, and his friends Josh and Ruth Rose aren't the most developed characters, but they could grow after a few books. I think one of the reasons this book series is so popular is because it empowers the child-characters and has them work with the adults on an almost equal playing field to solve the mystery. I'm actually intere More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 07, 2011

Cheryl in CC NV rated it:

Surprisingly fun. Of course I had the twist figured out from the very first real clue - but that's probably because I like lateral thinking puzzles and brain teasers. If I were a child or even a fan of mysteries I'd devour the set. I might just grab the rest of the ones in the library anyway as they're very short.

Only three stars because it's not very significant or meaningful, and nor would I recommend these to any other adult. Still, I can't find fault with them, so if you wa More...

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Jan 07, 2012

Stella ☢FAYZ☢ rated it:

Holy mother load of childhood memories. These books, along side Cam Jansen, became my childhood. I was known as The Girl Who Loves Mystery Books at my school library. Yep. I was that cool. (Still am).

I am only going to review the first in this series because you guys probably wouldn't want 26 "OMG I LOVED THESE BOOKS" reviews.
And, "A" stands for Awesome so how fitting.

Calling children everywhere. If you want to be like Stella Chen one day, start reading these books because you will not regret it More...

7 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jun 28, 2010

Shannon rated it:

A group of kids awaits a book signing with their favorite mystery author, Wallis Wallace. But the author never shows, and the kids find it strange. As they follow clues, they think Wallis Wallace has been kidnapped.
I like this book because it's pure kid imagination. It's what kids wish would happen. Who didn't want to be part of a mystery crew like on Scooby Doo or this A - Z Mysteries crew? The start to this series is imaginative, fun and keeps you interested.

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Jan 19, 2012

Inoli rated it:

Two ratings for early chapter books, I think. Around a three for me; and these, I think, are a definite four for what they are and who their audience is. I really did some smiling through these and I was pretty impressed with several things (read the first three and will copy this to the others). They seemed to me like they would be really challenging and I liked the addition of the map of the neighborhood in the front.

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Feb 05, 2010

Christine rated it:

Approximate Interest Level/Reading Level: Grades 2-3

Format: Chapter Book

First book in a popular series. Three young friends investigate the suspected kidnapping of their favorite author. Beneficial in regards to developing fluency, teaching students how to make predictions, and developing a sense of pride as younger readers graduate into chapter books.

Author's site: http://www.ronroy.com/atoz/

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Dec 18, 2011

Samantha rated it:

This first book in the A to Z Mysteries series is about Dink and his friends Josh and Ruth and the mystery of the disappearing author. Dink writes to his favorite author and invites him to visit, but is concerned when the author doesn't show up. Dink and his friends solve the mystery of his absence. Great mystery for the transitional reader.

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Dec 26, 2009

Snooka rated it:

THIS BOOK WAS MY FAVORIT A TO Z MYSTERIE BOOK! Its about an author coming to Green Lawn that Dink loves. When he gets to the book signing the author does not show up. Dink gets so worried. In the end Dink, Josh and Ruth Rose find him and to their suprise the author turns out to be a girl. Everyone thought she was a boy. This book is a reread!

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Dec 18, 2011

Tamir rated it:

We enjoyed this book. Though I did have to edit some of it... There's a part that someone's pretend kidnapped. But I don't want to scare my child with all the details (no there weren't many...but still) about the pretend kidnap. But other than that, it was a nice little mystery. I plan on having us read more from the series.

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Jun 12, 2010

Amy rated it:

Caitlin loved this book--it's the first in the A to Z Mysteries series. The three main characters are Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose. Dink invited his favorite author to come to his city and he doesn't show up at the book signing, so the kids solve the mystery of what happened to Wallis Wallace.

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Jul 03, 2011

Tina rated it:

I read this one to my grandson and we both enjoyed following Dink and his pals while they find out what happened to Dink's favorite author during his visit to Dink's hometown. This will be a good series for him to read on his own, too, if he's so inclined.

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Sep 21, 2009

Koverdiek rated it:

Wonderful series for the 2nd - 3rd grade reader. the characters are great freinds with different strengths that work together to save the twon. Good mystery without the scary bad guys and no violence. Loved all of the books for a young reader.

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Jan 25, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

Emily loves these books, and I picked this one up to see why she found them so entertaining. It was a fun read. I highly recommend reading what your kids like. It gives a different look into their personalities.

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Dec 19, 2008

Travis rated it:

Dink, Josh and Ruth Rose figure out that Mavis Green is actually Wallace Wallace so Mavis Green is saying in her new book that kids in the book solve the mystery that an author got kidnapped so she sees how real kids can figure out the mystery.

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Apr 10, 2010

Melissa rated it:

This was fun and engaging, fairly readable. A good recommendation for parents wanting their children to move into fiction. After this, try some of the fatter mysteries: Bunnicula, Cam Jansen, Encyclopedia Brown.

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Sep 11, 2009

Rowlak5 rated it:

This was my first chapter book read-a-loud this school year. We finished on a library day. When my students returned from the library, half of them had checked out A to Z mysteries. Needless to say, it was a raving hit! Class voted and we will be reading The Bald Bandit next.

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May 07, 2009

Dolly rated it:

Although we've read a few of these books, we wanted to read the first in the series and try to read the rest in order, if we can find them all at the library. It's interesting to see how these kids get their start as detectives, solving mysteries. It's not my favorite of the books so far, but it's got our girls hooked.

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Jan 04, 2012

Madison added it

For those of you who are curious, I'm going through a phase where I'm reading books from my younger years. In other words, when I was ten and younger. And I recall this as being one of my more favorite series.

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Aug 23, 2010

Mandi rated it:

This is a super fun mystery with a twist that caught me by surprise! I knew something wasn't adding up, but couldn't put my finger on it. I read this with my kindergarten aged son and he loved it.

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Mar 18, 2011

Savannah rated it:

I got all 26 of these books for $2 a piece. I can see why the kiddos would like these books. Definitely kid-friendly and I think it would be a really exciting mystery for the young folks.

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Feb 15, 2011

Leokids rated it:

A-Z Mysteries has been one of Ian's favorite series (age 7/8). He wanted to own them all, and still doesn't want to get rid of them, even though he hasn't touched them for several months.

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Sep 11, 2010

CI546_Jennifer rated it:

This is a great book for 3rd graders. I have the whole series in my classroom, but only a few take it out. Now that I have read more books in this series I will try to get more of my students to read this series. I believe children at this age can relate to the characters in the book. Who doesn't love a good mystery?

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Sep 29, 2008

Mohammed rated it:

Dink knew a mystery writer named Wallis Wallace,whom he loved. Dink invited him to his neighborhood to visit Green Lawn. He wanted Wallis Wallace books at "The Book Note". The famous author said he wold come, but he didn't come, so Dink thought he'd been kidnapped. When Dink told the police, the police thought Wallis Wallace had just missed his flight. But Dink did not think that. So it was up to Dink and his best two firends, Josh and Ruth Rose, to find Wallace before it was too More...

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Feb 22, 2011

Heather rated it:

The kids and I listened to these books in the car. They are along the lines of The Magic Tree House books, but not quite so clever. We look forward to listening to the rest!

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