lazygal's review against another edition
3.0
The reprint of Mysterious Disappearance of Leon will be a hit with those that love the Blue Baillet mysteries. Instead of codes, there are word puzzles to solve, all stemming from the garbled declarations of a drowning man.
A child-bride, heiress to a soup fortune, seeks her husband fourteen years after they marry; a boating accident in which Leon (oops! Noel) disappears leads to a 20+ year hunt through cities with St. Paul churches, New in their title, Chinese restaurants with won ton soups, seals and other oddities. Mrs. Carillon's quest also includes adopting two non-Siamese twins, Tina and Tony, wearing a purple bathing suit at all times, and a stint in the pest-hole after sort-of inciting a riot in Blookmingales.
Eventually, all is solved, people live happily ever after, and readers who like puzzles will have had fun.
ARC provided by publisher.
A child-bride, heiress to a soup fortune, seeks her husband fourteen years after they marry; a boating accident in which Leon (oops! Noel) disappears leads to a 20+ year hunt through cities with St. Paul churches, New in their title, Chinese restaurants with won ton soups, seals and other oddities. Mrs. Carillon's quest also includes adopting two non-Siamese twins, Tina and Tony, wearing a purple bathing suit at all times, and a stint in the pest-hole after sort-of inciting a riot in Blookmingales.
Eventually, all is solved, people live happily ever after, and readers who like puzzles will have had fun.
ARC provided by publisher.
thomcat's review against another edition
3.0
Read with 8 year old daughter. This was a fun mystery, with more than a few things to explain. I especially enjoyed the "where are they now" ending. In some ways, there were too many characters. We were often interrupted in our reading, and finishing it tonight, I had to flip back many times to figure out who a given character was, or when they had appeared. The three star rating is my daughters, but I generally agree with it.
rebecita's review against another edition
4.0
This was never a childhood favorite exactly. More like it worked its way into my brain and deposited all these bits I'm frequently tempted to reference. (Grape!) It's hilarious, if certainly no [b:The Westing Game|902|The Westing Game|Ellen Raskin|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1157748302s/902.jpg|869832]. And that's pretty much how I remember it. It's just too silly. Also, the puzzle of Leon is sort of falsely advertised as something you can follow along and solve. But, yay for Ellen Raskin and books that hold up on adult reading.
margaretann84's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. It's an exciting and puzzling mystery, even if the non-mystery parts aren't as well-written. I wish I could've stayed in the book longer than I did (although, I spent a fair amount of time with pencil and paper trying to figure out the clues). Highly recommended.
5/5 on here, 10/10 for myself
5/5 on here, 10/10 for myself
deejsylvis's review against another edition
3.0
I hadn't read it since I was a kid. It was fun to revisit, though I didn't try to solve the mystery on my own. :D
twicebaked's review against another edition
3.0
That ending was sad and a bit unsatisfying, but sweet.
(Only thing I hated was, that was disappointing.)
(Only thing I hated was
Spoiler
that she wasted her entire life looking for someone and then didn't even get together with him, if I remember correctlyliahay's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
dianochka's review against another edition
4.0
I remember my sixth grade teacher reading this to us. She started crying, she was laughing so hard.
library_hungry's review against another edition
3.0
This was very much a children's book, and it was very clever for that. I don't think I would have had any hope of solving the mystery myself. It's actually a lovely, sweet little story with a WIDE melancholy streak.
I think that reading a first edition with the author's illustrations actually took away from my appreciation of the book. The illustrations are silly, and they take away from the sense of reality that underlies the romping nature of the story. I think, without the illustrations, I might have given it 4 stars. That said, though, it was clever and sweet and sad and fun, and a good book for kids.
I think that reading a first edition with the author's illustrations actually took away from my appreciation of the book. The illustrations are silly, and they take away from the sense of reality that underlies the romping nature of the story. I think, without the illustrations, I might have given it 4 stars. That said, though, it was clever and sweet and sad and fun, and a good book for kids.