A to Z Mysteries

A to Z Mysteries

31 books
Author	Ron Roy
Illustrator	John Steven Gurney
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Children's, mystery novels
Publisher	Random House
Published	1997-2005, 2006-2011
Media type	Print (paperback)

A to Z Mysteries is a popular children's novel series written by Ron Roy and published by Random House. The series is generally considered among the best "easy readers" for young children. There are twenty-six books in the series, one for each letter of the alphabet. The series begins with The Absent Author, published in 1997, and ends with The Zombie Zone, published in 2005.

The books follow the adventures of three junior detectives, Donald David "Dink" Duncan, Joshua "Josh" Pinto, and Ruth Rose Hathaway. They are nine years old and live in Green Lawn, a fictional town in Connecticut, United States. Due to having the same author as the Capital Mysteries, the main characters' paths cross with KC and Marshall (the other series' main characters) and they become friends.

Other characters include Pal, a dog that once belonged to crooks and currently resides with Josh; a mystery writer named Wallis Wallace who first takes part in The Absent Author; and Mr. Linkletter, the local hotel receptionist. Others include Officer Fallon, Josh's younger twin brothers Bradley and Brian, Ruth Rose's younger brother Nate, and Mr. Pasky, owner of the local bookstore in Green Lawn.

The immense popularity^{[citation needed]} of the original series inspired a follow-up series A to Z Mysteries Special Edition with the same characters. The first book in this series, Detective Camp, was published in May 2006. In addition, Ron Roy wrote a spin-off series titled Calendar Mysteries.

An article in Horn Book Magazine states that one reason for the series' popularity may be that the main characters "are about as hip as oatmeal", offering relief to readers who may feel burdened by peer pressure.

Books

The books in the series include:

• The Absent Author (1997)
• The Bald Bandit (1997)
• The Canary Caper (1998)
• The Deadly Dungeon (1998)
• The Empty Envelope (1998)
• The Falcon's Feathers (1998)
• The Goose's Gold (1998)
• The Haunted Hotel (1999)
• The Invisible Island (1999)
• The Jaguar's Jewel (2000)
• The Kidnapped King (2000)
• The Lucky Lottery (2000)
• The Missing Mummy (2001)
• The Ninth Nugget (2001)
• The Orange Outlaw (2001)
• The Panda Puzzle (2002)
• The Quicksand Question (2002)
• The Runaway Racehorse (2002)
• The School Skeleton (2003)
• The Talking T-Rex (2003)
• The Unwilling Umpire (2004)
• The Vampire's Vacation (2004)
• The White Wolf (2004)
• The X'ed-Out X-Ray (2005)
• The Yellow Yacht (2005)
• The Zombie Zone (2005)
• Super Edition 1: Detective Camp (2006)
• Super Edition 2: Mayflower Treasure Hunt (2007)
• Super Edition 3: White House White-out (2008)
• Super Edition 4: Sleepy Hollow Sleepover (2010)
• Super Edition 5: The New Year Dragon Dilemma (2011)

Calendar Mysteries

The A to Z Mysteries have also led to a spinoff series called Calendar Mysteries, starting with January Joker. The series is aimed at second and third graders and focuses on Dink's cousin Lucy, Josh's younger twin brothers Brian and Bradley, and Ruth Rose's younger brother Nate. The main characters from A to Z Mysteries also make occasional appearances. While A to Z Mysteries focused on alliterating the alphabet to book titles, Calendar Mysteries relates the titles and themes to the different months of the year. The time and settings of each book often correspond to various holidays in a given month. Following January Joker, the book titles include February Friend, March Mischief, and April Adventure, May Magic and June Jam.

External links

• Ron Roy interview discussing A to Z Mysteries, kidsreads.com
• Ron Roy Official Site