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The Case of the Exploding Loo
Quirky twelve year old Noelle (Know-All) Hawkins may be one of the brightest girls in her class but even she can't explain how her dad, wacky scientist Big Brain Brian, spontaneously combusted while sitting in a portaloo. It's true that he was working on a new top secret Brain Ray machine and was on the point of a great break-through when he vanished - could this have had something to do with his disappearance? Know-All is sure all is not as it seems and with the help of her sister Holly she is determined to find out what really happened to her dad!
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 22, 2014
8 people are currently reading
51 people want to read
About the author
Rachel Hamilton
6 books28 followersRachel Hamilton’s first children’s book, 'The Case of the Exploding Loo', was published by Simon & Schuster in May 2014 and the second book in the series, 'The Case of the Exploding Brains', came out in February 2015. 'The Case of the Exploding Loo' won the Worcestershire Awesomest Book Award and the Ossett Riveting Reads Award. It was also runner up in the Montegrappa First Fiction award at the Emirates Festival of Literature and nominated for the Leeds Book Award and Redbridge Children's Book Award as well as being chosen as a recommended holiday read by The Sunday Express, the National Geographic Kids Magazine, and the Travel Show.
Rachel's second series, 'The Unicorn in New York' is published by Oxford University Press, The first book - 'Louie Let's Loose' - was chosen as part of the Big Read Great Summer Reads programme, the second book came out June 2016 and the third is due out in February 2016
Rachel is a graduate of both Oxford University and Cambridge University and has put her education to good use by working in an advertising agency, a secondary school, a building site and a men’s prison. She developed a passion for story-telling as an English teacher when she discovered it was the perfect way to get her students to shhh and listen to her.
Rachel now divides her time between the UK and Dubai, creating funny books for 9 to 12 year-olds and talking to young people about the joys of reading and writing. Rachel loves to make people laugh, especially when it’s intentional rather than accidental.
Rachel's second series, 'The Unicorn in New York' is published by Oxford University Press, The first book - 'Louie Let's Loose' - was chosen as part of the Big Read Great Summer Reads programme, the second book came out June 2016 and the third is due out in February 2016
Rachel is a graduate of both Oxford University and Cambridge University and has put her education to good use by working in an advertising agency, a secondary school, a building site and a men’s prison. She developed a passion for story-telling as an English teacher when she discovered it was the perfect way to get her students to shhh and listen to her.
Rachel now divides her time between the UK and Dubai, creating funny books for 9 to 12 year-olds and talking to young people about the joys of reading and writing. Rachel loves to make people laugh, especially when it’s intentional rather than accidental.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 31, 2014
Reading and reviewing humorous books for children is always difficult. Reading and reviewing any humorous book is always different because humour is so intensely personal, and it's always tempting to conflate your viewpoint with that of the intended audience. I therefore have to read the story as a whole and treat the humour as a, sort of, an added extra, whilst remembering that the viewpoint of the average nine year old is substantially different than mine (seriously, it is, I thought about tupperware the other day. Tupperware!)
So, with that slight caveat in place, we come to The Case of the Exploding Loo.
It's a smart, vivid, detective-y story where Noelle ("Know All") Hawkins sets out to find out what happened to her dad who has disappeared in the titular toilet. Aided and abetted by a cast of characters including her sister Holly, and Porter Lewis (portaloo spotter extraordinaire), she works her way through the case.
I have a lot of time for this book. It is thick with colour and character, and I really enjoyed that Noelle is smart and brave and very much a hero. It's not often that we see characters take pride and strength in their brains, and I liked that Noelle did. I liked her sense of identity and her strength (even when she didn't quite realise that she had it).
The detective element of the story is handled well, and I particularly liked how Hamilton had "clue recaps" built into the story. There was a point when I was worried that the clues would become too many to follow (they occur at regular highlighted intervals in the text) but the introduction of these little recaps sorted that out very nicely, without appearing too 'intervention-y'. (And yes, I'm aware that last word is poor and rubbish but basically what I'm trying to say is that Hamilton keeps you on track without making you reread the previous fifty pages in order to remember the what, the where and the who).
So, to sum: The Case of The Exploding Loo is vividly characterful and bright, and also includes a rather nice little shift at the end. Hamilton's worth keeping an eye on.
(PS - She's also very funny).
So, with that slight caveat in place, we come to The Case of the Exploding Loo.
It's a smart, vivid, detective-y story where Noelle ("Know All") Hawkins sets out to find out what happened to her dad who has disappeared in the titular toilet. Aided and abetted by a cast of characters including her sister Holly, and Porter Lewis (portaloo spotter extraordinaire), she works her way through the case.
I have a lot of time for this book. It is thick with colour and character, and I really enjoyed that Noelle is smart and brave and very much a hero. It's not often that we see characters take pride and strength in their brains, and I liked that Noelle did. I liked her sense of identity and her strength (even when she didn't quite realise that she had it).
The detective element of the story is handled well, and I particularly liked how Hamilton had "clue recaps" built into the story. There was a point when I was worried that the clues would become too many to follow (they occur at regular highlighted intervals in the text) but the introduction of these little recaps sorted that out very nicely, without appearing too 'intervention-y'. (And yes, I'm aware that last word is poor and rubbish but basically what I'm trying to say is that Hamilton keeps you on track without making you reread the previous fifty pages in order to remember the what, the where and the who).
So, to sum: The Case of The Exploding Loo is vividly characterful and bright, and also includes a rather nice little shift at the end. Hamilton's worth keeping an eye on.
(PS - She's also very funny).
May 5, 2014
First I have to say I am definitely not the target audience for this book, but I chuckled, I laughed out loud and I learned - I learned a lot. I could say many things like the character development is great and how it's good that things don't go quite as you expect them to. But that's not what you want to see when reading a review of a middle grade book. What is important is that I would have loved my kids to have had this book to read when they were ten…it's funny, it's geeky and it makes you think.
I read this book in proof form. It does not come until the 22nd of May 2014.
I read this book in proof form. It does not come until the 22nd of May 2014.
October 26, 2014
Originally posted on BookWorm.
What can I say? I know it's not what I usually blog about, but the blurb made it seem like a good laugh, and I'm glad to say that it was. Absolutely hilarious from cover to cover!
Rachel Hamilton really captures the essence of the pre-teen girl. Noelle is funny because we've all been there before; we've all seen conspiracy theories everywhere, and we've all fought with out sisters incessantly, while loving them to pieces at the same time. Hamilton captured that mix of innocence, confusion and utter certainty that they know all there is to be known (though in Noelle's case, she has more reason to think that way than most of us, since she's like a mini Sherlock Holmes!). That vulnerability really made her a very likeable character.
I also applaud the way Hamilton presented Noelle's father, Brian. At the start of the novel, he is an almost god-like figure to Noelle, who looks up to her father and his intelligence. But, as readers, we know that something isn't quite right when Noelle tells us about his plans to eradicate the world of people with lower IQs. It is an important message, and one that Hamilton puts across beautifully in the book - that just because they're an adult, doesn't mean that what they say is always right, and that sometimes our heroes disappoint us in the worst way possible. And Noelle goes on with her life, visiting her father in prison, but well aware of the fact that his actions were wrong.
It's safe to say that this well please Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans everywhere.
What can I say? I know it's not what I usually blog about, but the blurb made it seem like a good laugh, and I'm glad to say that it was. Absolutely hilarious from cover to cover!
Rachel Hamilton really captures the essence of the pre-teen girl. Noelle is funny because we've all been there before; we've all seen conspiracy theories everywhere, and we've all fought with out sisters incessantly, while loving them to pieces at the same time. Hamilton captured that mix of innocence, confusion and utter certainty that they know all there is to be known (though in Noelle's case, she has more reason to think that way than most of us, since she's like a mini Sherlock Holmes!). That vulnerability really made her a very likeable character.
I also applaud the way Hamilton presented Noelle's father, Brian. At the start of the novel, he is an almost god-like figure to Noelle, who looks up to her father and his intelligence. But, as readers, we know that something isn't quite right when Noelle tells us about his plans to eradicate the world of people with lower IQs. It is an important message, and one that Hamilton puts across beautifully in the book - that just because they're an adult, doesn't mean that what they say is always right, and that sometimes our heroes disappoint us in the worst way possible. And Noelle goes on with her life, visiting her father in prison, but well aware of the fact that his actions were wrong.
It's safe to say that this well please Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans everywhere.
August 6, 2014
I met Rachel Hamilton during YALC (she’s awesome btw) and because The Case of the Exploding Loo was the read for the junior bookclub at StorytellersInc I did know a little about it. Long story short, when Rachel offered me a copy I said yes. I didn’t plan on reading it this soon but after ‘testing’ the first page I had to finish it.
Know-All (real name Noelle) is our narrator; she’s very smart when it comes to science, maths, etc but maybe not quite so much when it comes the world outside of school and books. After her father’s disappearance following the portaloo explosion Noelle decides to solve the mystery herself because the police aren’t getting anywhere.
The two things that I loved most about this book were the humour. I know from overhearing conversations in bookshops that kids love it and I had so much fun reading (doubt I’m the only so-called “grown-up” that will say this) so I think it’s universal.
My other favourite? Noelle’s older sister Holly. She is definitely the best older sister I’ve come across in a book in ages. While she might not be school smart the way Noelle is, Holly is very intelligent and wise and a little scary with electric tools. She’s also a lot more observant about their dad.
The Case of the Exploding Loo is explosive with fun and adventure. Enjoy! :P
(Oh come on, I had to…)
Know-All (real name Noelle) is our narrator; she’s very smart when it comes to science, maths, etc but maybe not quite so much when it comes the world outside of school and books. After her father’s disappearance following the portaloo explosion Noelle decides to solve the mystery herself because the police aren’t getting anywhere.
The two things that I loved most about this book were the humour. I know from overhearing conversations in bookshops that kids love it and I had so much fun reading (doubt I’m the only so-called “grown-up” that will say this) so I think it’s universal.
My other favourite? Noelle’s older sister Holly. She is definitely the best older sister I’ve come across in a book in ages. While she might not be school smart the way Noelle is, Holly is very intelligent and wise and a little scary with electric tools. She’s also a lot more observant about their dad.
The Case of the Exploding Loo is explosive with fun and adventure. Enjoy! :P
(Oh come on, I had to…)
August 30, 2014
Fabulous Debut - If you are looking for an exciting read for your children, then look no further. Rachel Hamilton is a new children's author and this book should appeal to both boys and girls alike. Great for a class read (for all you teachers) or if like me you have both girls and boys in your family. We loved the female lead character (Noelle/Know-all) and what's great about the book is it has enough to engage people at all different ages (although audience I think is 9-13) my 6 year old laughed, my 9 year old loved it (she described it as the kind of story that makes you want to keep reading and has loads of cliffhangers) and my 40 something husband chuckled as he read aloud to them both. Its got bucket loads of humour and a good storyline to keep an older young reader interested.
June 3, 2014
Edward, age 10, a sometimes reluctant reader, has called this book "really epic, cool, awesome and everything". He can't stop reading it and has been delighting the rest if the family with excerpts.
June 11, 2014
My 9-year-old daughter read this book. She absolutely loved it and was glued to it for the couple of days it took for her to get through it. She said: 'It was the best book I've ever read. It was full of twists and turns and clues and I loved trying to figure out what happened.' Highly recommended.
November 10, 2014
I love this book and it's quirky humour. Every brilliant, unappreciated nerd must read this book. Highly recommended.
February 16, 2019
Although its premise is about as silly as it can possibly get (who doesn’t love an exploding toilet???), it is a solid whodunnit. Plenty of clues and red herrings, an overtly clever but also sometimes not so clever amateur child detective with her not overtly clever but also sometimes extremely clever sidekicks, and the all important plot twist (which was completely unsurprising but still perfectly satisfying). The kids will love it.
August 2, 2021
This is aimed at younger readers but i gave it a go and loved it. The mystery is great and its very funny. Would recommend
December 5, 2014
Moontrug has a very long list at home (not of ordinary things like food to buy at the supermarket or chores to do around the house) – she has a list of literary crushes (characters from books she thinks are cute). Particular highlights on the list are: Will Parry from Philip Pullman’s Subtle Knife, Will Potter from Emma Carroll’s Frost Hollow Hall and, of course, Sherlock Holmes from Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories. There is something seriously cool about a guy who can walk into a room and ‘know’ a person’s story before they’ve even opened their mouth. It got Moontrug thinking though – there are lots of books about male detectives (Sherlock Holmes, Wild Boy, Raphael in Trash) - so where are the ladiiiiieeeeesss?! Cue Rachel Hamilton’s seriously funny debut for 8-12 years, The Case of The Exploding Loo.
Having engaged in a literary rap battle with Hamilton earlier in the year, Moontrug decided to delve inside the mystery of the exploding loo… Wacky scientist Professor Brian ‘Big Brain’ Hawkins has vanished in a portaloo explosion, leaving only his smoking shoes behind. His daughter, Noelle, has an IQ of 157 and a photographic memory (but is NOT a mutant freak, whatever her sister, Holly, says). She’s born a Sherlock and the perfect person to investigate. Sort of.
Noelle, or Know-All as she’s called by most, narrates the story with suitable academic charm: ‘Our local police are not displaying the dedication to crime-fighting I’ve come to expect from watching CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on TV. They certainly don’t solve as many crimes.’ Her earnest determination to solve the mystery of her father’s disappearance is often hilarious, particularly as Noelle has no idea that the local police find her repeated phone calls unbearably irritating: ‘Some of [PC Eric’s] fellow officers groan. Maybe they have food poisoning. I’ve heard bad things about police canteens.’
Noelle is a truly original detective, full of Sherlockian brains and style: ‘I always travel around school at speed because a moving target is harder to hit’ and her diagrams to explain her thought processes are so funny. Check out Noelle’s pie chart showing the percentage of students supporting the most popular theories about what Ms Grimm, the Maths teacher, does when she’s not teaching Maths. Morgue attendant and Witch were Moontrug’s faves…
But alongside Noelle’s quest to find out where her father is sits her relationship with her ‘explosive’ sister, Holly. Hamilton develops their relationship superbly as Noelle learns to appreciate her sister’s hands-on approach to solving the crime and Holly begins to understand that Noelle is less of a mutant freak than she had believed. Moontrug particularly liked watching Holly wield her chainsaw (that bit would be AMAZING as a film!) and the moment where Holly tries to teach Noelle to stand up to bullies.
Noelle’s methodical way of thinking is both interesting and amusing: ‘Breakfast: herrings and green leafy vegetables because oily fish contains Omega-3 fatty acids that improve the performance of the brain cell membranes. So why are there no penguins on Mastermind?’ and the plot is full of twists and turns, facts and diagrams, clues and findings – perfect for inquisitive 8-12 year olds who like a bit of rule breaking. As Noelle’s friend, Porter, says, ‘Best time to break a rule is straight after you’ve been punished for the last one. No one suspects you’re still up to no good.’
Having engaged in a literary rap battle with Hamilton earlier in the year, Moontrug decided to delve inside the mystery of the exploding loo… Wacky scientist Professor Brian ‘Big Brain’ Hawkins has vanished in a portaloo explosion, leaving only his smoking shoes behind. His daughter, Noelle, has an IQ of 157 and a photographic memory (but is NOT a mutant freak, whatever her sister, Holly, says). She’s born a Sherlock and the perfect person to investigate. Sort of.
Noelle, or Know-All as she’s called by most, narrates the story with suitable academic charm: ‘Our local police are not displaying the dedication to crime-fighting I’ve come to expect from watching CSI: Crime Scene Investigation on TV. They certainly don’t solve as many crimes.’ Her earnest determination to solve the mystery of her father’s disappearance is often hilarious, particularly as Noelle has no idea that the local police find her repeated phone calls unbearably irritating: ‘Some of [PC Eric’s] fellow officers groan. Maybe they have food poisoning. I’ve heard bad things about police canteens.’
Noelle is a truly original detective, full of Sherlockian brains and style: ‘I always travel around school at speed because a moving target is harder to hit’ and her diagrams to explain her thought processes are so funny. Check out Noelle’s pie chart showing the percentage of students supporting the most popular theories about what Ms Grimm, the Maths teacher, does when she’s not teaching Maths. Morgue attendant and Witch were Moontrug’s faves…
But alongside Noelle’s quest to find out where her father is sits her relationship with her ‘explosive’ sister, Holly. Hamilton develops their relationship superbly as Noelle learns to appreciate her sister’s hands-on approach to solving the crime and Holly begins to understand that Noelle is less of a mutant freak than she had believed. Moontrug particularly liked watching Holly wield her chainsaw (that bit would be AMAZING as a film!) and the moment where Holly tries to teach Noelle to stand up to bullies.
Noelle’s methodical way of thinking is both interesting and amusing: ‘Breakfast: herrings and green leafy vegetables because oily fish contains Omega-3 fatty acids that improve the performance of the brain cell membranes. So why are there no penguins on Mastermind?’ and the plot is full of twists and turns, facts and diagrams, clues and findings – perfect for inquisitive 8-12 year olds who like a bit of rule breaking. As Noelle’s friend, Porter, says, ‘Best time to break a rule is straight after you’ve been punished for the last one. No one suspects you’re still up to no good.’
September 12, 2014
I laughed out loud reading Rachel's clever and imaginative book and was gripped from beginning to end. I love detective stories and this was a perfect blend of fascinating plot with lots of twists and turns, humour and likeable characters that will appeal to both boys and girls.
The dad of Noelle - 'Know-All' - vanishes after a tragic portaloo explosion and the quirky 12-year-old is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. A true 'geek', she's the perfect person to solve the baffling case involving talking shoes, mindblowing experiments and strange uses of the colour turquoise.
She's assisted along the way by her sarcastic older sister, Holly, and portaloo spotter, Porter Lewis, who are both strong supporting characters.
I really enjoyed the tight pace of the book that romps along at speed, scattering clues along the way to the climatic conclusion that I didn't see coming. I also thought the 'recaps' were fun along with the whacky illustrations.
It's a brilliant debut by Rachel - a really fun, colourful read which I'm highly recommending to my friends' children. I'm look forward to her next book.
The dad of Noelle - 'Know-All' - vanishes after a tragic portaloo explosion and the quirky 12-year-old is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. A true 'geek', she's the perfect person to solve the baffling case involving talking shoes, mindblowing experiments and strange uses of the colour turquoise.
She's assisted along the way by her sarcastic older sister, Holly, and portaloo spotter, Porter Lewis, who are both strong supporting characters.
I really enjoyed the tight pace of the book that romps along at speed, scattering clues along the way to the climatic conclusion that I didn't see coming. I also thought the 'recaps' were fun along with the whacky illustrations.
It's a brilliant debut by Rachel - a really fun, colourful read which I'm highly recommending to my friends' children. I'm look forward to her next book.
November 1, 2014
Quirky twelve year old Noelle (Know-All) Hawkins may be one of the brightest girls in her class but even she can't explain how her dad, wacky scientist Big Brain Brian, spontaneously combusted while sitting in a portaloo. Or can she...?
A bright, funny, original detective story with bounce-off-the-page entertaining characters. Reluctant readers will love all the boxed clues, illustrations and jokes, die-hard kid readers will enjoy trying to figure out the mystery of the exploding loo for themselves, and anyone with even half a sense of humour will laugh out loud throughout.
A bright, funny, original detective story with bounce-off-the-page entertaining characters. Reluctant readers will love all the boxed clues, illustrations and jokes, die-hard kid readers will enjoy trying to figure out the mystery of the exploding loo for themselves, and anyone with even half a sense of humour will laugh out loud throughout.
March 31, 2015
I chose this book based on recommendations on Twitter and because I was looking for something a bit lighter. I'm really glad that I did as it is clever and funny and the pace never lets up. The story is based around a brainy young girl and her feisty sister seeking to solve the mystery of their dad's apparent spontaneous combustion in a portaloo. Great start! The characters are brightly drawn and the whole thing bounces along delightfully with clues and fights and talking shoes all thrown into the mix. It kept me engaged throughout and I can't wait to read the sequel.
June 4, 2015
The title and front cover will attract children to read this book... However, I found the plot and content to be rather ridiculous & overly silly for my tastes, which prevented me from getting invested in the outcome.
Although, I liked how the book was full-to-bursting with fun facts and knowledge presented through an entertaining medium by adding fun little quips and amusing sketches & doodles, which also helped break up the story slightly...
Hopefully, this book also subtly teaches morals to kids... "Just because I can work out how to do something, that doesn't mean that I should."
Although, I liked how the book was full-to-bursting with fun facts and knowledge presented through an entertaining medium by adding fun little quips and amusing sketches & doodles, which also helped break up the story slightly...
Hopefully, this book also subtly teaches morals to kids... "Just because I can work out how to do something, that doesn't mean that I should."
October 31, 2014
Libro infantil pero me ha encantado. La protagonista es super lista y le encanta demostrarlo, la historia es super interesante y me gustaría haber leído algo tan entretenido e inteligente cuando era pequeña
March 20, 2014
This looks fun. I like the cover and I can't wait until it is published.
February 17, 2016
Calculating. Cerebral. Witty. Whimsical. An enjoyable read.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews