Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablo's Nose

Encyclopedia Brown #20

by Donald J. Sobol

Encyclopedia Brown, the secret weapon in Idaville's war on crime, is back--with 10 all-new mysteries to solve. Bugs Meany and his tricky Tigers are back, too. And Wilford Wiggins, lazy as a bedpost, is still dreaming up ways to part little kids from their allowances. But with the help of Sally Kimball, the prettiest (and the toughest) girl in the fifth grade, Encyclopedia can solve any case. From Pablo's missing nose to racing reptiles that become snake snacks, the answers to all the cases are in the back of the book--but can you solve them on your own first?

Genres: Mystery, Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Short Stories, Contemporary

80 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Donald J. Sobol was an award-winning writer best known for his children's books, especially the Encyclopedia Brown mystery series. Mr. Sobol passed away in July of 2012.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Neo and I enjoy reading these sets of Encyclopedia Brown mysteries, having read a score of the collections. We quickly read this group of stories, filled with some unique mysteries we can process in a few minutes, connecting with one another as we guess the all but obvious solutions. The kid detective still works his magic in Idaville, USA, keeping the town crime-free and collecting his coins from those who can pay. Encyclopedia finds a robber who does work during a blackout, foils a ‘get rich quick’ scheme, and keeps Bugs Meany from framing him yet again! These wonderful five-minute mysteries seek to entertain and exercise the brain of both child and adult, but require some keen sleuthing. Neo and I have used them as a before bedtime activity and we are getting much better at piecing the clues together in a timely manner. Young sleuths in the making may want to sharpen their skills with the massive collection of stories.

Neo really likes the stories that keep him thinking. I remember having these stories read to me when I was young as well, helping me want to pass along the tradition. Neo thoroughly enjoys listening to the stories and making an effort to uncover the clues that will help solve the cases. He mentioned that these are perfect stories for parent-child reading, but would be great for a good reader when they have time or are on a road trip. A note to parents: the stories are dated (even as they author writes in the 1990s) and some of the terminology or word choices might not be as correct as you would like your young reader to use on a daily basis.

Did you know Neo’s has his own GR account for reviews? Check him out: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1...

[Scott Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablo's Nose, Bugs Meany demonstrates yet again his lack of skills to gain social acceptance within Encyclopedia Brown's close-knit group of friends. If Encyclopedia would befriend Bugs, perhaps inviting Bugs to supper at the Brown's house just once, Bugs may stop his meandering way through life and his occasional run-ins with the law. Is it so difficult for Encyclopedia to extend a hand of friendship to Bugs, instead of continually ridiculing him for his shortcomings? Encyclopedia, please, make a difference. Make the world a better place. Encyclopedia, it's up to you to stop this superfluous entitlement mindset that you have developed in that backward town of Idaville.

[DJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Encyclopedia Brown was one of my favorite series when I was younger. At the time, there was only 3 or 4 books available at the library, and I remember borrowing them multiple times. The books are simple, there are multiple stories and you, as a reader, get to be a detective and try to solve the crime/problem. Solutions are in the back of the book. I am not sure, but it seems the newer books has a lot more shorts compared to the older ones. Regardless, the book kept me scratching my head, and the solutions were quite obvious and gave me d'oh moments. The book series does not need to be read in numerical order since the author always explain quickly who Encyclopedia Brown is and why he's called that as well as quick background on major characters that is seen throughout the series. It was nice to reminisce my favorite series, and it still hold true today. I was only able to borrow some of the newer ones in the series vs the old ones due to library/publishers "stuff". Would love to get ahold of all of them.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablo's Nose," by Donald J. Sobol is about Leroy- the Encyclopedia, son of Detective Brown and Mrs. Brown. They live in a town called Idaville that is crime free. Whenever Chief Brown needs help solving a case he goes home and tells his family over dinner and Leroy always knows the solution. He can figure out the combination to a safe, who kidnapped Professor Irvin, and deal with the "Tigers."z The tigers are a neighborhood gang that causes trouble and cheats Muriel Rivers. Along with the help of Sally Kimball they can solve any crime or mystery that happens and who stole Pablo's nose for the Abraham Lincoln.

The illustrations, by Eric Velasquez show an illustration for every crime. Before every chapter there is a little drawling giving you a glimpse of what it will be about. In many of the illustrations, like on page 13 Leroy has a puzzled look on his face representing that he is thinking hard to solve something. These illustrations are probably done in pencil because of the sketchy look and they are in black and white.

This a great book for children to read a have fun with, targeted towards 3-5 grade. They can predict the ending to any crime before it is solved. In the back of the book, starting on page 62 there are the solutions to every crime or mystery. Throughout the story you have to flip back and fourth so there is a lot of pausing while reading. I think this makes the book interesting and it gives you a minute to think about what the solution could be.

[Neo · Rating 4 out of 5]

My dad and I enjoy reading these sets of Encyclopedia Brown mysteries, having read TWENTY (!!) of the collections. We quickly read this group of stories, filled with some unique mysteries we can process in a few minutes, connecting with one another as we guess the all but obvious solutions. The kid detective still works his magic in Idaville, USA, keeping the town crime-free and collecting his coins from those who can pay. Encyclopedia finds a robber who does work during a blackout, foils a ‘get rich quick’ scheme, and keeps Bugs Meany from framing him yet again! These wonderful five-minute mysteries seek to entertain and exercise the brain of both child and adult, but require some keen sleuthing. We have used them as a before bedtime activity and we are getting much better at piecing the clues together in a timely manner. Young sleuths in the making may want to sharpen their skills with the massive collection of stories.

I quite like the stories that keep him thinking. These stories were read to my dad when he was young, helping me be a part of the tradition. I like listening to the stories and making an effort to uncover the clues that will help solve the cases. These are perfect stories for parent-child reading, but would be great for a good reader when they have time or are on a road trip. A note to parents: the stories are dated (even as they author writes in the 1990s) and some of the word choices might not be as correct as you would like your young reader to use on a daily basis.

[Nakima Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

I THINK THAT THIS BOOK IS VERY GOOD BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT JUST READING YOU ARE ALSO THINKING HOW TO FIND THE ANSWER TO THE CASE.THIS HELP KIDS IN A LOT OF WAY I REALLY LIKE THIS AUTHOR.HIS BOOKS MAKE ME THINK ABOUT WHEN I WAS YOUNGER BOOK WHEN I USE TO READ NATE THE GREAT BOOKS THEY BOTH IS LIKE THE SAME.THE REASON WHY I STARTED TO READ ENCYCLOPEDIA BECAUSE OF MY SCIENCE CLASS WE HAD TO USE HAER OUR TEACHER READ IT AND WE HAD TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPEN BY PUTTING EVERY THING TOGATHER IT WAS LIKE WE WAS EXPLORE THE CASES AND THEN TRYING TO SOVLE IT

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The answer to the first case is totally bogus, or at least I couldn't make any sense of it from the explanation given. The rest were ok though.

Also, after reading about 20 of these books, I'm wondering just how many times he has reused the left/right east/west clockwise/counterclockwise thing. We see it all the time, and twice in this book even.

[Seth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a book I enjoyed as a child. It helped inspire in me a love of learning and helped to encourage my curiosity of the world around me. I would encourage grade schoolers to read this book--and reading with a parent is even better.

[Gabriel · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite case in this book was the Case of Pablos Nose. Someone stole Abraham Lincoln's nose. It was the kind of nose that had glasses and a mustache and eyebrows attached. A girl with a purple bicycle stole the nose. She tried to trick Encyclopedia.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leroy "Encyclopedia" Brown, and a cast of recurring characters return as Encyclopedia continues to solve crimes, break codes and solve mysteries in this collection of ten short stories. Encyclopedia and his side kick, and fellow crime buster Sally Kimball are on the case.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly solvable. Don't give up on the one I missed, The Case of the Smoke Signals. The clues are all there, and the only 'encyclopedic' fact needed is one that everyone over the age of 8 or so should surely know. I did, I'm embarrassed to admit.

[Mskychick]

Placeholder for Cry Wolf by Patricia Briggs

[Canavan · Rating 3 out of 5]

✭✭✭

[Vidyuth Gowtham · Rating 5 out of 5]

good

[Kevin Hogg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another typical Encyclopedia Brown book. The formula doesn't change much. A story at the dinner table, a problem with Bugs, a Bugs revenge story, and so on. But it works. These stories were pretty good. Some tougher, and some that should be pretty easy for people who have read many from this series.

Sleeveless Lock - Maybe someone could solve this. I don't know. It's pretty ridiculous, like the author heard about an obscure terms for a particular type of word and wrote a story around it. It got me thinking, and I noticed the pattern, but I wouldn't know how to put a name to it.

Smoke Signals - This type of story has been done a few times. Should be fine for anyone who has read a few.

Peace Offering - I like stories like this. I knew where to find the clue. I knew what sort of clue I should be looking for. And I didn't find it. I appreciate reading the solution and knowing that it was so close but that the author got me.

Masked Man - Yet another case of "I can't write a name because it will be discovered, but I've got plenty of time and ability to come up with a code or sequence that the attacker/thief/kidnapper will look at and decide that it's perfectly reasonable for me to be writing apparent gibberish that is completely harmless in the hands of a detective, despite the fact that a dozen identical cases have been solved through this exact tactic."

Organ Grinder - Perhaps even more fulfilling than not finding a clue that's staring you in the face is that time when you catch something early in the story, know what to look for, and crack the case before it's over.

Pablo's Nose - I'm not sure that this solution really holds up. Is this always the case?

Carousel Horse - I caught the clue, but the extra information in the solution was interesting as well.

Wilford Whammy - Not Wilford's best attempt. There was so much focus on this particular event that it should stand out to the reader, even if they don't know the physics of it.

Racing Reptiles - I looked and looked for a clue in this story and came up empty handed. The solution makes sense, so it must be a well-written story.

Unknown Thief - The solution made sense. I just didn't know the facts behind it. I would have preferred to switch this one around with the Racing Reptiles story, as I think that would have been a stronger closer.

Overall, a good mix of levels of challenge.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars -- It was definitely interesting to read three Encyclopedia Browns in a row. I felt like I was reading the evolution of Encyclopedia Brown! This 1996 version had the hardest edge. There was rougher talk and more fights. The 1963 original was trying to find itself, while the 2010 version was the 'everybody wins a trophy' one. As far as cases go, this book had the most difficult ones to solve. Each one asked for not just reasoning, but for some knowledge as well. Many of them were quite clever; I am not sure that I have a favorite.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating for nostalgia. I loved these books as a kid, after I found old copies of my dad's at my grandparents' house. Some of the slang is hilariously dated now, but the short little mysteries hold up. It's honestly pretty impressive that decent little mysteries can fit in just a few pages, and I loved the flip-to-the-back-for-the-answer format. I learned a lot of interesting trivia from these books, and even remembered the solution to the first mystery in this particular collection.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leroy (known as Encyclopedia Brown) is the son of Detective and Mrs. Brown. Encyclopedia is known for being able to solve any crime or mystery that happens. Each story has the answers to the case at the back of the book so children can try to predict the ending before reading it. Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of Pablo's Nose is a fun book for children in 3rd grade and higher. (Even I as an adult enjoyed trying to figure out the mysteries.)

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

These are excellent solve-it-yourself mysteries for kids! Teens and adults may like solving them, too.

[Tim Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are some unusually tough cases in this one!

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll be pausing on this series for a bit, but this is fun to revisit as an adult and while I remember some solutions from when I first read this, there are plenty that stumped me.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was ok, but the solutions seem a little far-fetched for a kid to know.

[Cindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and creative. Makes you think hard, but most cases are doable if you learn to watch the small details. ;)

[Joyce T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wilfred is back! I've learned a lot of random facts through these books.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Encyclopedia Brown is an excellent series for readers of many ages--even those who have 'moved beyond' this reading level will enjoy matching wits with the kid detective and his many friends and foes, while also enjoying the humorous dialogue and narration (some of which is more humorous because it is a bit outdated). Though occasionally a mystery will be frustratingly difficult to solve because it involves technology that is no longer very commonly used (such as the mystery about CB radios) or things that kids don't encounter in their daily life (I remember being frustrated by a mystery about a pipe and one about a non-electric razor when reading this series as a kid), for the most part, these mysteries are still very on point and fun to read and solve. (Additionally, if your students get exceedingly frustrated, there is now a rebooted series, which I believe is much more modern and includes more recent tech like cell phones.)

Though each chapter is a separate mystery, there are excellent themes throughout the series such as using your wits and friends to outsmart bullies (as many of the kids in the neighborhood do, with Encyclopedia's help) as well as (though of course I don't condone violence) the theme of Sally consistently being a better physical fighter than the big mean (male) bully. While this is presented in a bit of a humorous light, she still commands respect from her male and female peers (except of course from the bullies, usually), and was totally my favorite character when I was reading these while growing up.

Rereading these as an adult, I notice that there are a variety of different types of puzzles to solve, from common riddles to linguistic knowledge to pattern recognition to unique general knowledge to puzzles that can be solved just by noticing the details in the story, which is a good blend. Though some of the slang is a little weird and I'm not convinced that they were actually every slang terms (the bully says that someone is crazy by asserting that "the girl has drunk too many milk shakes" (despite no milkshakes being present in the story)), the stories are still entertaining. Also, there are detailed illustrations sprinkled throughout the book that help the reader visualize the scene, but the mysteries do not rely on those pictures (so a reader could still solve the mystery if listening to only the text via an audiobook and not having access to the pictures).

Overall, I enjoy this series, but the fact that it is a bit outdated in content and linguistics means that I would rather place this in my classroom only if I also had a good mix of more recent mystery books that readers could more reasonably be expected to understand and solve, so I will be looking at the more recent Encyclopedia Brown reboot (as well as other more recent mystery series) in the next few days.

[Jennasis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great childrens series about a younf boy detective. He solves the mysteries that go on in his town with the help of his friends and insight from his father the police officer.

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

Encyclopedia Brown. What else is there to say? I got like one correct though!