The Malted Falcon: A Chet Gecko Mystery
Chet Gecko, an elementary school student and wise-cracking private eye, returns in this book about a Valentine's day caper invovling a giant dessert.
Fourth-grader Chet Gecko is much like any other boy his age. He has a sweet tooth, gets bored at school, and thinks girls and valentines are gross.
But Chet is also a private eye, with a wise crack for every situation and an eye for trouble. Detective work can be disgusting, especially when you are hired by a girl to retrieve a valentine. Yech! Yet the simple snatch-and-grab quickly unfolds into a grand caper where a ticket to the world's greatest dessert has been stolen and everyone is a suspect.
The Malted Falcon is written with a thirties detective story flair, despite the fact it takes place at an elementary school. Still, the setting provides a host of colorful characters, and the author does a wonderful job of taking the reader along on a case which, while simple and short enough for young readers, involves several plot twists, red herrings, and surprising revelations, as any good mystery should.
Chock full of puns and similes, the dialog is humorous and witty, helping to create the nostalgic feel. Combined with the fact the hero is in fourth grade and goes to school with creatures that find what we consider disgusting as delicious (for instance, referring to the joy of recess as "the chocolate center of a Centipede Joy candy bar"), the humor is right on target for the elementary school readers for which the book was written.
While Chet may be a detective kids can identify with, his wisecracking attitude may not be a parent's ideal. Still, Chet's attitude and snappy comebacks are integral to the style that makes this series stand apart from other mysteries for young readers.
