7 Ate 9: The Untold Story (Private I)

Lazar's (Normal Norman) hardboiled mystery is narrated by Private I, a pink capital letter who wears a striped tie and fedora, and gestures with white-gloved cartoon hands. His client is an agitated green number 6: "Word on the street is that 7 ate 9! And now he's after me!" "Stay here. I'll get to the root of this," says I. "I hope so," responds 6. "I fear my days are numbered." MacDonald's (Henry's Hand) nostalgic artwork fits the noirish setup to a T (so to speak), and his chunky letters and numbers, created using 19th-century wood type, make for an eye-catching and highly appealing cast. His city streets feature brick storefronts and aerodynamically contoured automobiles, and a slice of pi costs $3.14 at the local diner. The solution to the mystery is pretty clever, the pace is brisk, and the arithmetic jokes approach infinity ("I knew about this 7 fella," muses I. "He was odd"). Lazar's numbers game stands up to repeat readalouds, which allow readers to review each groaner of a pun. Ages 3-5. Author's agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary. Illustrator's agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. (May)

K-Gr 3--Private investigator Al F. Bet relates a recent case history--the mysterious disappearance of Number 9. It all starts with Client Number 6, who comes into the office visibly agitated about Number 7. Has shady 7 committed a horrific crime? Are his own days "numbered"? In search of some leads, the PI heads to Cafe Uno, and after interviewing a series of suspects and witnesses and having a generous serving of pi, he adds up the evidence in page after page of math-related wordplay. The intrepid investigator ignores all negatives, solving the mystery of the missing number by searching the streets and questioning a collection of verbose cartoon personalities (created digitally with Photoshop, colored pencil, and watercolor) featured prominently on the page. Readers will enjoy finding all of the math references hidden in the text and the art. The dialogue will gain appreciative groans up to the final moment, when Al is ready to resume his letter cases, because "they're A-OK in his book." VERDICT An A-1 purchase for those who love plays on words, mysteries, and humorous tales.--Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano ISD, TX