Mysteries for Upper Elmentary

Grades 3-5

Updated April 26, 2024
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A royal conundrum
Yee, Lisa
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER .When a notorious thief is out for priceless treasure (gems! cats! general decorum!)-who're you gonna call? An elite team of crime-fighting underdogs, that's who! The Misfits are on the case in this hilarious illustrated series from Newbery Honoree Lisa Yee and...
R.L. 5.8
Hold fast
Balliett, Blue
Paper Book
From NYT bestselling author Blue Balliett, the story of a girl who falls into Chicago's shelter system, and from there must solve the mystery of her father's strange disappearance. Where is Early's father? He's not the kind of father who would disappear. But he's gone . . . and he...
R.L. 5.2
Insignificant events in the life of a cactus
Bowling, Dusti
Paper Book
Large Print's increased font size and wider line spacing maximizes reading legibility, and has been proven to advance comprehension, improve fluency, reduce eye fatigue, and boost engagement in young readers of all abilities, especially struggling, reluctant, and striving readers.
R.L. 4.6
Three times lucky
Turnage, Sheila
Paper Book
Meet Miss Moses LoBeau-rising sixth grader natural born detective, borderline straight-A student, and goddess of free enterprise. Mo washed ashore in Tupelo Landing, North Carolina, eleven years ago during one of the meanest hurricanes in history, and she's been making waves ever since. ...
R.L. 3.9
Wretched waterpark
White, Kiersten
Paper Book
A middle-grade mystery series that's spooky, creepy, and filled with gothic twists!Meet the Sinister-Winterbottom twins, who solve mysteries at increasingly bizarre summer vacation destinations in the hopes of being reunited with their parents-or at the very least finally finding a good churro....

R.L. 4.9

Bunnicula : a rabbit-tale of mystery
Howe, Deborah
Paper Book
Beware the Hare! Is he or isn't he a vampire? Before it's too late. Harold the dog and Chester the cat must find out the truth about newest pet in the Monroe household--a suspicious-looking bunny with unusual habits...and fangs! Though scoffed at by Harold the dog, Chester the cat tries to warn his...
R.L. 4.2
The Parker inheritance
Johnson, Varian
Paper Book
A Boston Globe / Horn Book Honor winner * Four Starred Reviews * Over Ten Best-of-Year Lists"Powerful.... Johnson writes about the long shadows of the past with such ambition that any reader with a taste for mystery will appreciate the puzzle Candice and Brandon must solve." -- The New York Times...
R.L. 4.2
The lost library
Stead, Rebecca
Paper Book
Now a New York Times bestseller and a #1 Indie Bestseller, readers won't want to miss this story of a little free library guarded by a cat, and a boy who takes on the mystery it keeps. A TODAY SHOW Kids' Read Pick! * The Amazon #1 Best Book for Kids * "A...
R.L. 4.3
From the mixed-up files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Konigsburg, E. L.
Paper Book
A Time Best YA Book of All Time (2021) Run away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art with E. L. Konigsburg's beloved classic and Newbery Medal­-winning novel From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler! When Claudia decided to run away, she...
R.L. 4.7
Room one : a mystery or two
Clements, Andrew
Paper Book
Ted Hammond loves a good mystery, and in the spring of his fifth-grade year, he's working on a big one. How can his school in the little town of Plattsford stay open next year if there are going to be only five students? Out here on the Great Plains in western Nebraska, everyone understands that if...
R.L. 5.1
The sisters Grimm, book one : the fairy-tale detectives
Buckley, Michael
Paper Book
With the winning combination of Nancy Drew meets Shrek, this first book in the new Sisters Grimm series will entertain with a hilarious mix of mysteries and fairy tale twists.In the tradition of Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events and The Spiderwick Chronicles comes a new humorous mystery...
R.L. 5.2
The real McCoys
Swanson, Matthew
Paper Book
The first book in an illustrated middle-grade series in which a precocious detective solves mysteries with her super-smart little brother. Her name's Moxie. Moxie McCoy. Bold, opinionated, and haplessly self-confident, the world's greatest fourth-grade detective...
R.L. 5.2
The Westing game
Raskin, Ellen
Paper Book
For twenty-five years, Ellen Raskin's Newbery Medal-winning The Westing Game has been an enduring favorite and is now being reissued with a brand-new jacket by Kevin Hawkes and an introduction by Ann Durell. This highly inventive mystery involves sixteen people who are invited to...
R.L. 5.3
York. Book one, The shadow cipher
Ruby, Laura
Paper Book
"The pleasures of the novel go far beyond the crackling, breathless plot and the satisfaction of watching the puzzle fall into place. The book is shot through with humor, both laugh-out-loud and subtle." --New York Times Book Review From National Book Award finalist and Printz Award winner...
R.L. 5.3
Absolutely Truly
Frederick, Heather Vogel
Paper Book
An unsent letter in a first edition copy of Charlotte's Web leads to a hunt for treasure in this heartwarming middle grade mystery from the author of The Mother-Daughter Book Club. Now that Truly Lovejoy's father has been injured by an IED in Afghanistan and is...
R.L. 5.4
Book scavenger
Bertman, Jennifer Chambliss
Paper Book
A New York Times-Bestseller! "Full of heart and replete with challenging ciphers for readers to decode, Bertman's debut is literary cousin to classic puzzlers like The Westing Game." ―Publishers Weekly, starred review "Fans of Escape...
R.L. 5.5
The name of this book is secret
Bosch, Pseudonymous
Paper Book
Read the series that's sold more than 2 million copies--if you dare! Warning: this description has not been authorized by Pseudonymous Bosch. As much as he'd love to sing the praises of his book (he is very vain), he wouldn't want you to hear about his brave 11-year...
R.L. 5.6
The case of the missing marquess
Springer, Nancy
Paper Book
When Enola Holmes, the much younger sister of detective Sherlock Holmes, discovers her mother has disappeared--on her 14th birthday nonetheless--she knows she alone can find her. Disguising herself as a grieving widow, Enola sets out to the heart of London to uncover her mother's...
R.L. 6.6
The Fenway foul-up
Kelly, David A.
Paper Book
Now leading off the line-up--book #1 in a brand-new early chapter book mystery series where each book is set in a different American ballpark! Thanks to Kate's mom, a sports reporter, cousins Mike Walsh and Kate Hopkins have tickets to the Red Sox game and All Access passes to Fenway...
R.L. 3.9
A to Z mysteries: The absent author
Roy, Ron
Paper Book
Help Dink, Josh, and Ruth Rose solve mysteries from A to Z! Kids love collecting the entire alphabet and super editions! With over 8 million copies in print, the A to Z Mysteries have been hooking chapter book readers on mysteries and reading for years. Now this classic kid...
R.L. 3.4
Cam Jansen and the mystery of the stolen diamonds
Adler, David A.
Paper Book
"Reissued in 2007 by Viking"--T. p. verso.
R.L. 3.2

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