Spy Game (7 page)

Jessie was wondering about something, too. “The day you surprised us with that picnic lunch,” she said, “you were trying to give us a hint, weren’t you, Amanda?”

Amanda didn’t deny it. “I wanted to point you towards Fudge Hollow.”

“You gave us another hint, too,” Violet realized, “when you said there might be family photos in the hope chest.”

“Right again,” said Amanda.

This made Mrs. Dawson laugh. “I don’t think these children needed any hints,” she said. “They figured everything out—and more!”

Steve was quick to agree. “The kids in the Detective Club books couldn’t have done it better. And thanks to the Aldens,” he added, “we can send
The Jigsaw Puzzle Mystery
off to the publishers.”

“I can’t wait till it comes out!” said Benny.

Amanda looked over at Steve. With a quick nod, Steve hurried out of the room. He came back a moment later holding a stack of typed pages tied together with string.

“You won’t have to wait, Benny,” Steve said, placing the bundle on the table. “We made an extra copy of
The Jigsaw Puzzle Mystery.”

“You mean, we can read it?” Benny asked in disbelief.

“Before it’s even published?” added Jessie.

“You sure can,” said Amanda. “But first, it needs a dedication.” Fishing a pen from her purse, she wrote something on the first page. Then she passed the manuscript to the Aldens.

When Jessie took a closer look, her eyes widened and she gasped.

“What is it?” asked Benny. “What does it say?”

Jessie read the dedication aloud:

To Henry, Violet, Benny, and Jessie, the world’s greatest detectives!

“Yippee!” cried Benny. “We’ll be famous.”

“I think this calls for a celebration,” said Mrs. Dawson, as everyone laughed. “Anybody for chocolate cake?”

Benny raised his hand high in the air. “My two favorite things,” he said with a grin. “Food
and
a mystery!”

G
ERTRUDE
C
HANDLER
W
ARNER
discovered when she was teaching that many readers who like an exciting story could find no books that were both easy and fun to read. She decided to try to meet this need, and her first book,
The Boxcar Children,
quickly proved she had succeeded.

Miss Warner drew on her own experiences to write the mystery. As a child she spent hours watching trains go by on the tracks opposite her family home. She often dreamed about what it would be like to set up housekeeping in a caboose or freight car — the situation the Alden children find themselves in.

When Miss Warner received requests for more adventures involving Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny Alden, she began additional stories. In each, she chose a special setting and introduced unusual or eccentric characters who liked the unpredictable.

While the mystery element is central to each of Miss Warner’s books, she never thought of them as strictly juvenile mysteries. She liked to stress the Aldens’ independence and resourcefulness and their solid New England devotion to using up and making do. The Aldens go about most of their adventures with as little adult supervision as possible — something else that delights young readers.

Miss Warner lived in Putnam, Connecticut, until her death in 1979. During her lifetime, she received hundreds of letters from girls and boys telling her how much they liked her books.

The Boxcar Children Mysteries

T
HE
B
OXCAR
C
HILDREN

S
URPRISE
I
SLAND

T
HE
Y
ELLOW
H
OUSE
M
YSTERY

M
YSTERY
R
ANCH

M
IKE’S
M
YSTERY

B
LUE
B
AY
M
YSTERY

T
HE
W
OODSHED
M
YSTERY

T
HE
L
IGHTHOUSE
M
YSTERY

M
OUNTAIN
T
OP
M
YSTERY

S
CHOOLHOUSE
M
YSTERY

C
ABOOSE
M
YSTERY

H
OUSEBOAT
M
YSTERY

S
NOWBOUND
M
YSTERY

T
REE
H
OUSE
M
YSTERY

B
ICYCLE
M
YSTERY

M
YSTERY IN THE
S
AND

M
YSTERY
B
EHIND
THE
W
ALL

B
US
S
TATION
M
YSTERY

B
ENNY
U
NCOVERS
A
M
YSTERY

T
HE
H
AUNTED
C
ABIN
M
YSTERY

T
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D
ESERTED
L
IBRARY
M
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T
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A
NIMAL
S
HELTER
M
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O
LD
M
OTEL
M
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M
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H
IDDEN
P
AINTING

T
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A
MUSEMENT
P
ARK
M
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T
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M
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M
IXED
-U
P
Z
OO

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AMP
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UT
M
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T
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M
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G
IRL

T
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M
YSTERY
C
RUISE

T
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D
ISAPPEARING
F
RIEND
M
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T
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M
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INGING
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HOST

M
YSTERY IN THE
S
NOW

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P
IZZA
M
YSTERY

T
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M
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H
ORSE

T
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M
YSTERY AT THE
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OG
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HOW

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ASTLE
M
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L
OST
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ILLAGE

T
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M
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I
CE

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M
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P
URPLE
P
OOL

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G
HOST
S
HIP
M
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M
YSTERY IN
W
ASHINGTON
, DC

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ANOE
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RIP
M
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EACH

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ISSING
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AT

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S
NOWFLAKE
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NN

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M
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TOLEN
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ALL
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UNDAE
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OT
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IR
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ALLOON

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OOKSTORE

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ILGRIM
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ILLAGE
M
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TOLEN
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OXCAR

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AVE

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T
RAIN

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F
AIR

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INE

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UIDE
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OG
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URRICANE
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ET
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HOP
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ESSAGE

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IREHOUSE
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AN
F
RANCISCO

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IAGARA
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ALLS
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A
LAMO

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UTER
S
PACE
M
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S
OCCER
M
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M
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LD
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TTIC

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ROWLING
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EAR
M
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AKE
M
ONSTER

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ALL

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INDY
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ITY
M
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LACK
P
EARL
M
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C
EREAL
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OX
M
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T
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ANTHER
M
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T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
Q
UEEN’S
J
EWELS

T
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S
TOLEN
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WORD
M
YSTERY

T
HE
B
ASKETBALL
M
YSTERY

T
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M
OVIE
S
TAR
M
YSTERY

T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
P
IRATE’S
M
AP

T
HE
G
HOST
T
OWN
M
YSTERY

T
HE
M
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B
LACK
R
AVEN

T
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M
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M
ALL

T
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M
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N
EW
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ORK

T
HE
G
YMNASTICS
M
YSTERY

T
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P
OISON
F
ROG
M
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T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
E
MPTY
S
AFE

T
HE
H
OME
R
UN
M
YSTERY

T
HE
G
REAT
B
ICYCLE
R
ACE
M
YSTERY

T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
W
ILD
P
ONIES

T
HE
M
YSTERY IN THE
C
OMPUTER
G
AME

T
HE
M
YSTERY AT THE
C
ROOKED
H
OUSE

T
HE
H
OCKEY
M
YSTERY

T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
M
IDNIGHT
D
OG

T
HE
M
YSTERY OF THE
S
CREECH
O
WL

T
HE
S
UMMER
C
AMP
M
YSTERY

T
HE
C
OPYCAT
M
YSTERY