Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Small Readers: Detective Paw of the Law: The Case of Piggy's Bank by Dosh Archer

I admit that I wasn't initially crazy about Dosh Archer's Urgency! Emergency! series but once I saw how much the kids absolutely loved them I was won over. We've been using them in book clubs for several years and my only regret is that not every library in our consortium owns a wide selection so I have to use inter-library loan to get enough copies for book club.

I was thrilled to discover that Archer is debuting a new easy reader series; it has the same goofy sense of humor, pastel cartoons, and memorable characters. Detective Paw is a dog who isn't up on all the new tricks, but he's still a good detective. Luckily, he has his assistant, Patrol Officer Prickles, who knows how to use all the latest technology. In this first mystery, they solve the case of Piggy's Bank. Piggy the bank manager has called in with an urgent crime - the bank has been robbed!
Detective Paw examines all the clues, interviews the witnesses, and then, after discussing the case with Prickles, comes to a conclusion and the guilty thief is arrested.

This is a higher level of easy reader; more suitable for second to third grade or a high-level first grader. They also could be read aloud. I was disappointed that they were more stereotypical than Archer's previous series; Both Paw and Prickles are male, as is the bank manager, security guard, and one of the tellers. The only females are the elderly victim and the second bank teller. There was also some stereotypes - Prickles' gadgets don't find any clues, but Paw's trusty old magnifying glass and experience solve the case.

Verdict: For younger kids who like mysteries, this new series is sure to be a hit. Recommend to fans of King and Kayla and Archer's previous books.

ISBN: 9780807515570; Published October 1, 2018 by Albert Whitman; Borrowed from another library in my consortium

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for this lovely review.
I will take into account your comments.
Just to let you know Judge Joan is going to feature more, and who knows she may even get her own series you never know.
Judge Joan is a strong woman who has fought against the odds to get where she is. She is higher than Detective Paw and is the only person he answers to!
She is based on my cat who rules the roost at my house.

Dosh Archer

Jennifer said...

That's hilarious! Yay for Judge Joan! I just had a patron in yesterday asking hopefully where she could find more of these - I gave her Urgency Emergency and told her and her kid they'd have to be patient (-:)