What do you think?
Rate this book
Field Trip Mysteries #1
The Painting That Wasn't There
James "Gum" Shoo's art class heads to the museum. They've been learning about forged art, but they never expected to find a fake in the gallery! Only Gum and his gumshoe friends will be able to solve this museum caper.
79 pages, Library Binding
First published August 1, 2007
19 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
About the author
Steve Brezenoff
104 books125 followersSteve Brezenoff is the author of the young adult novels The Absolute Value of -1 and Brooklyn, Burning, and his third, Guy In Real Life, will be released in 2014. He has also written dozens of chapter books for younger readers. Though Steve grew up in a suburb on Long Island, he now lives with his wife and their son in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 4, 2022
James "Gum" Shoo is back with his friends, finding themselves involved in another mystery. This time, they're in a museum, and the object of interest is a painting. Noticing something odd about the painting, Gum and his friends put themselves on the case. Will they be able to convince the museum security guard that a crime really has been committed, or will the thief get away?
Steve Brezenoff delivers another great mystery, and the anonymous narrator delivers another great performance. Having listened to several of Brezenoff's mysteries, I have yet to listen to one that I didn't like, and one of the best things about the mysteries is that they don't take a huge time commitment. You get a fun story in less than an hour, and while there's not a lot of character development in each story, you do get a good amount of character development spread out among all the stories. So, by the time you've listened to 4 or 5 of them, you have a pretty good idea of the characters involved.
I will definitely be listening to most of Brezenoff's mysteries in the future.
Steve Brezenoff delivers another great mystery, and the anonymous narrator delivers another great performance. Having listened to several of Brezenoff's mysteries, I have yet to listen to one that I didn't like, and one of the best things about the mysteries is that they don't take a huge time commitment. You get a fun story in less than an hour, and while there's not a lot of character development in each story, you do get a good amount of character development spread out among all the stories. So, by the time you've listened to 4 or 5 of them, you have a pretty good idea of the characters involved.
I will definitely be listening to most of Brezenoff's mysteries in the future.
October 23, 2017
Although the protagonists in this book are sixth graders, this is definitely a book for kids who are just starting to read chapter books. The story and the characters are very simple. The mystery, although absurd to an adult, would probably be enjoyed by a first or second grader. I would definitely add this to my collection of first chapter books. It's unimportant that the kids are older, they act like any kids - and would totally be embraced by a younger reader. The book has all the elements of a mystery, and would be a good read aloud when introduction the genre to a first or second (or perhaps even third) grade class.
February 23, 2020
Four sixth graders go on field trips and solve mysteries. In this story, they go to an art museum and discover that one of the paintings is a fake. They are able to solve the mystery before they leave to go back to school by making a list of suspects and then “investigating”. So many coincidences and lucky breaks make this kind of a ridiculous mystery, but kids may still like it. I might recommend to kids who REALLY want a good mystery. Short, with lots of pictures, makes it a good easy chapter. Could be a high/low too... since the characters are sixth graders and the mysteries a bit more complex (but again, ridiculous).
November 8, 2017
Art Study
A fun detective book that is likely to inspire your kid to look closer at paintings from now on.
Clean language and story line. Totally approved for and enjoyed by my 9 year old.
A fun detective book that is likely to inspire your kid to look closer at paintings from now on.
Clean language and story line. Totally approved for and enjoyed by my 9 year old.
March 23, 2019
i think that this book is good and the idea of it's mystery i really like it but maybe if they could put some more details like when they found the painting on the wall .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2012
The Painting That Wasn’t There is the first of the Field Trip Mysteries by Steve Brezenhoff. If you are (or have) a young reader that is interested in mysteries this is a nice series with which to start him or her.
The plot of The Painting That Wasn’t There centers around its 6th grade characters realizing a painting in the Museum is a forgery, solving the crime and apprehending the culprit during the course of their museum field trip. It is narrated by James (Gum) Shoo. He is accompanied by his friends Egg (Edward G. Garrison), Cat (Catalina) and Sam (Samantha). The fact that each character’s name requires another name in parentheses to clarify it is one of the problems with the book. Although the story uses art history content I was disappointed in the author’s approach to its inclusion. Having specialized in Art History and taught it in elementary schools in connection with both the French Language and children’s literature I believe there are much more exciting ways in which to impart/teach Art History to young readers.
There are too many inane details thrown at the reader right away that are never followed up. Thus, what could have become reasons to care about the story instead remain superficial to both the characters and the plot. With little to no character development I cannot recommend this Field Trip Mystery as a read-aloud or independent read.
That said, although I did not find the plot’s details interesting, I can see where a young reader with an interest in (and novice at) solving mysteries might find it rewarding to follow the clues and solve the mystery. The mystery itself is plotted clearly, providing young readers with clues, suspect lists and a methodical approach to the solution. I could see the story being used as part of a classroom lesson on deductive reasoning, or some similar problem-solving strategy for a 2nd or 3rd grade class.
Due to the methodical plotting and problem-solving approach, however, one or more of the other Field Trip Mysteries may be worth a try if you know a young reader interested in mysteries. I have not read any of the other books in the series and it is always possible that the characters are developed further in these stories.
The plot of The Painting That Wasn’t There centers around its 6th grade characters realizing a painting in the Museum is a forgery, solving the crime and apprehending the culprit during the course of their museum field trip. It is narrated by James (Gum) Shoo. He is accompanied by his friends Egg (Edward G. Garrison), Cat (Catalina) and Sam (Samantha). The fact that each character’s name requires another name in parentheses to clarify it is one of the problems with the book. Although the story uses art history content I was disappointed in the author’s approach to its inclusion. Having specialized in Art History and taught it in elementary schools in connection with both the French Language and children’s literature I believe there are much more exciting ways in which to impart/teach Art History to young readers.
There are too many inane details thrown at the reader right away that are never followed up. Thus, what could have become reasons to care about the story instead remain superficial to both the characters and the plot. With little to no character development I cannot recommend this Field Trip Mystery as a read-aloud or independent read.
That said, although I did not find the plot’s details interesting, I can see where a young reader with an interest in (and novice at) solving mysteries might find it rewarding to follow the clues and solve the mystery. The mystery itself is plotted clearly, providing young readers with clues, suspect lists and a methodical approach to the solution. I could see the story being used as part of a classroom lesson on deductive reasoning, or some similar problem-solving strategy for a 2nd or 3rd grade class.
Due to the methodical plotting and problem-solving approach, however, one or more of the other Field Trip Mysteries may be worth a try if you know a young reader interested in mysteries. I have not read any of the other books in the series and it is always possible that the characters are developed further in these stories.
September 8, 2016
This book is part of a series called Field Trip Mysteries. If you've read the Cam Jansen series for kids, it's along those lines. A group of sixth graders solve a mystery using powers of observation to eliminate some suspects and catch the crook. The book is about 80 pages long: large print, sketches taking up some of those, and pages that have just one sentence written Large.
The characters weren't well written, and the mystery was simplistic.
While it involves sixth graders, it seemed to me that the book was better suited to a much younger audience. Maybe those who are just starting chapter books.
The characters weren't well written, and the mystery was simplistic.
While it involves sixth graders, it seemed to me that the book was better suited to a much younger audience. Maybe those who are just starting chapter books.
December 16, 2009
James and his friends seem to always get caught up in a mystery needed to be solved. When they travel to the River City Art Museum, they realize one of the paintings on the wall is actually a copy! They go about making a list of suspects and narrowing it down until they find their culprit!
I absolutely fell in love with the illustrations in this book. C.B. Canga does a phenomenal job with the full color pages. The mystery itself is fairly simple and well explained so that the younger readers understand how the mystery was solved. The other fantastic thing about this book, was the activities at the end which could be used to engage students into further literacy skills and projects.
This is definitely a book I'd recommend to introduce young or struggling readers to the genre of mysteries.
I absolutely fell in love with the illustrations in this book. C.B. Canga does a phenomenal job with the full color pages. The mystery itself is fairly simple and well explained so that the younger readers understand how the mystery was solved. The other fantastic thing about this book, was the activities at the end which could be used to engage students into further literacy skills and projects.
This is definitely a book I'd recommend to introduce young or struggling readers to the genre of mysteries.
June 6, 2015
Overall, I thought this was a great starter mystery book. The chapters were fast paced and to the point, which kept the reader's interest the whole way through. There was also a section in the back giving more information on the topics discussed, vocabulary, and phrases used.
The only thing I did not enjoy about this book was that right from the start, I knew who had stolen the painting. I thought it was rather predictable, even though the author had tried throwing you off with the trench coat character. For a younger reader, though, they would not catch on quite as quickly.
The only thing I did not enjoy about this book was that right from the start, I knew who had stolen the painting. I thought it was rather predictable, even though the author had tried throwing you off with the trench coat character. For a younger reader, though, they would not catch on quite as quickly.
June 6, 2015
Lots of cool things about this series; I love all the add-one like the detective's dictionary, discussion questions, and even the way the author/illustrator summaries are written is creative. It's also an awesome layout and perfect content for third grade readers. The only thing I didn't love is the actual storyline; no suspense and not enough clues along the way to reveal the true thief. Still, a fun series for 2nd-3rd grade readers.
December 8, 2015
Cute book-too low for most of my 5th graders.
"James "Gum" Shoo's art class heads to the museum. They've been learning about forged art, but they never expected to find a fake in the gallery! Only Gum and his gumshoe friends will be able to solve this museum caper."
"James "Gum" Shoo's art class heads to the museum. They've been learning about forged art, but they never expected to find a fake in the gallery! Only Gum and his gumshoe friends will be able to solve this museum caper."
September 11, 2010
3rd-James "Gum" Shoo's art class is going to the museum. They've been learning about the masters, but never expect to spot a forgery. Will they be able to find the thief in time?
October 7, 2010
This book is something non-readers would like it is short and basic. I felt both the characters and plot were flat.
January 17, 2011
Good book for older elementary students who are reading below grade level. Simple plot and vocabulary.
May 19, 2011
AWSOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
January 10, 2016
Great fun for independent readers. Full of art extras. Quick and enjoyable mystery.
May 3, 2015
Minnesota author!
August 23, 2016
These fields trip mysteries series are perfect for a second or third grader.
January 12, 2014
This book would be good for a beginning chapter book for young reader.
Read
September 23, 2018Read. Not reviewed.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews