Chet Gecko loves a good mystery. Almost more than he loves his fee--stinkbug pie.
So when fellow fourth grader Shirley Chameleon asks him to find her missing brother, Billy, Chet expects the case to be as easy a pie. But Billy's disappearance is part of a larger plot, one that involves the Rat Sisters, a riddling junkyard dog, and a vicious Gila monster named Herman. If Chet doesn't solve the case fast, the entire school could be humiliated. Worst of all, Chet might not get his fee. And Chet's hungry. . . .
Zesty and entertaining. The combination of school details, animal classmates, and homage to Raymond Chandler is glib but broadly and sustainedly humorous. . . . Young readers . . . will want to scuttle along with this schoolyard sleuth.
-The Bulletin
THE MYSTERY OF MR. NICE
Green-scaled gumshoe Chet Gecko hits his stride in this hard-boiled follow-up to The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse . . . Hale throws in wisecracks by the handful, terrible jokes . . . , and daffy clues. . . . Hold on to your fedoras: this gecko's going places. -Kirkus Reviews
Bruce Hale is the author of five picture books as well as the Chet Gecko mysteries. A popular speaker, teacher, and storyteller for children and adults, he was awarded a Fulbright grant in 1998 to teach stroytelling and to study folklore in Thailand. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaii.
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The Case of the Long-Gone Lizard
Some cases start rough, some cases start easy. This one started with a dame. (That’s what we private eyes call a girl.)
It was a hot day in September. The kind of day when kindergartners wake up cranky from their naps. The kind of day when teachers pull their hair and dream of moving to Antarctica.
In other words, a normal school day.
I was watching a fly. He zigged and zagged over my desk. He flew barrel rolls and loop-de-loops. Near as I could tell, he was getting ready to sing The Star Spangled BlsĒ
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