Detective Dinosaur (I Can Read Level 2)

First, Detective Dinosaur solves the mystery of the missing hat. Then he cracks the case of the squeaky shoe. Then he goes on night patrol, and spots a scary shadow in a dark alley. Can it be a monster? Help Detective Dinosaur follow the clues and find out!

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2An appealing, if somewhat bungling, detective is introduced in this easy reader. Three short chapters each present a separate case. In "The Case of the Missing Hat," Detective Dinosaur's derby is on his head the whole time, although cleverly hidden from sight in each picture. In "Night Patrol," the detective is frightened by a noise. "Perhaps it is a monster!... Perhaps we should call the Police!" "We are the Police, sir!," Officer Pterodatyl reminds him. The jokes are not particularly original, but they are likely to sound fresh to young readers. Alley's watercolor-and-ink cartoons include plenty of visual interest and some sideline humor. The vocabularyDetective Dinosaur, Officer Pterodactyl, and Deputy Diplodocusmay seem at odds with the intended audience, but most primary graders know their dinosaur names (at least to hear them) as well as they know their ABCs. An entertaining addition.Sharon R. Pearce, San Antonio Public Library, TX