Children's Mystery Books

Mystery Books for Grades 1 - 6

Updated June 18, 2026
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City of Mission Viejo Library City of Mission Viejo Library
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Children's Mystery Books

Mystery Books for Grades 1 - 6

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Ada Lace, on the case
Calandrelli, Emily
Paper Book
From Emily Calandrelli--host of Xploration Outer Space, correspondent on Bill Nye Saves the World, and graduate of MIT--comes the first novel in a brand-new chapter book series about an eight-year-old girl with a knack for science, math, and solving mysteries with technology.

AR: 4.0

Lexile: 590

Agent Moose
O'Hara, Mo
Paper Book
Agent Moose, the best (worst) secret agent in the Big Forest, and his slightly-more-intelligent sidekick Owlfred are on the case in this new full color graphic novel chapter book series from Mo O'Hara, author of My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish, illustrated by Jess Bradley!...

AR: 3.0

Lexile: 400

Banana Fox and the Secret Sour Society
Kochalka, James
Paper Book
Eisner Award-winning cartoonist James Kochalka makes his Graphix Chapters debut with this laugh-out-loud mystery series! Get drawn into reading with Graphix Chapters! Graphix Chapters are ideal books for beginning and newly independent readers aged 6-8. With approachable page...

AR: 2.5

Lexile: 520

The body under the piano
Jocelyn, Marthe
Paper Book
Aggie Morton lives in a small town on the coast of England in 1902. Adventurous and imaginative but deeply shy, Aggie hasn't got much to do since the death of her beloved father... until the fateful day when she crosses paths with twelve-year-old Belgian immigrant Hector Perot and discovers a dead...

AR: 5.4

Lexile: 750

The case of the strange splash
Winkler, Henry
Paper Book
From New York Times bestselling creators--Emmy Award-winning actor Henry Winkler, children's book author Lin Oliver, and Caldecott Medal-winning author-illustrator Dan Santat--comes Detective Duck: The Case of the Strange Splash, a hilarious, full-color...

AR: 3.9

Lexile: 680

Denis ever after
Abbott, Tony
Paper Book
Written by award-winning author Tony Abbott and perfect for fans of The Ethan I Was Before and The Thing About Jellyfish, this bittersweet middle grade novel follows the ghost of Denis Egan as he teams up with his living twin brother to solve the mystery of his death. Denis Egan is dead....

AR: 4.1

Lexile: 620

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's library
Grabenstein, Chris.
Paper Book
THE START OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING SERIES WITH MORE THAN TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD! Can you escape from what James Patterson calls "the coolest library in the world"? Follow along and solve the clues in this interactive adventure! From the co-author of Murdle...

AR: 4.5

Lexile: 720

King and Kayla and the case of the missing dog treats
Butler, Dori Hillestad
Paper Book
King & Kayla are back on the case in this laugh-out-loud mystery from the Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Award-winning series. Kayla made peanut butter treats for Thor, Jillian's new puppy. But now the treats are missing, and King is under suspicion. Analytical Kayla...

AR: 2.2

Lexile: 440

Little Penguin and the Mysterious Object
Bentley, Tadgh.
Paper Book
Little Penguin solves his first mystery in this hilarious new I Can Read! adventure by Little Penguin Gets the Hiccups author Tadgh Bentley. For new readers who are fans of Mo Willems's Elephant and Piggie series and Adam Rubin's Dragons Love Tacos. Little Penguin has...

AR: N/A

Lexile: N/A

Murder is bad manners
Stevens, Robin
Paper Book
Two friends form a detective agency--and must solve their first murder case--in this "sharp-witted debut" (Publishers Weekly, starred review) that is the first adventure in a brand-new middle grade mystery series set at a 1930s boarding school. Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong...

AR: 5.9

Lexile: 910

Mystery in Rocky Mountain National Park
Johnson, Aaron
Paper Book
Before Jake's grandfather died, he was on the trail of a centuries-old mystery. And he has entrusted that mystery to Jake, leaving behind a set of hidden codes, riddles, maps, and other clues that lead Jake and his friends on a scavenger hunt into the heart of Colorado's wild and rugged Rocky...

AR: 4.8

Lexile: N/A

Mystery James digs her own grave
Russell, Ally
Paper Book
Abandoned in a cemetery and raised in a funeral home, a girl who can see and smell the supernatural must solve the mystery of a priceless heirloom stolen from her family's business. Perfect for fans of Netflix's Wednesday and Beetlejuice! "A new middle grade heroine you...

AR: N/A

Lexile: 860

The mystery of locked rooms
Currie, Lindsay
Paper Book
*Instant New York Times and USA Today bestseller!* Crack the codes. Find the treasure. Escape the house. From the acclaimed author of Scritch Scratch and What Lives in the Woods comes an action-packed adventure novel about three friends who team up to find a hidden treasure in an...

AR: 4.4

Lexile: 620

Mystery on Museum Mile
Wells, Marcia.
Paper Book
Art, mystery, fun and friendship, combine in this illustrated middle grade series debut. Sixth grader Edmund Xavier Lonnrot, codename "Eddie Red," has a photographic memory and talent for drawing anything he sees. When the NYPD is stumped by a mastermind art thief, Eddie...

AR: 4.9

Lexile: 690

The newspaper club
Vrabel, Beth
Paper Book
Learn what it means to be a journalist in this fun, fast-paced new middle grade series about a club of kid reporters by an award-winning author. Nellie Murrow -- the daughter of two (former) newspaper reporters -- was named after one of the fiercest journalists who...

AR: 4.6

Lexile: 710

Sherlock Chick's first case
Quackenbush, Robert
Paper Book
Look out Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Chick hatched from his egg with a detective's hat and magnifying glass, and he's on the case in this adorable, easy-to-follow mystery from Robert Quackenbush. Within moments of his birth, Sherlock Chick lived up to the name he'd just been given....

AR: 2.3

Lexile: 400

The Sherlock society
Ponti, James
Paper Book
A New York Times bestseller! In the tradition of Nancy Drew, four kids and one grandfather in Miami tackle a decades-old mystery in this first book full of "atmosphere, history, and lively humor" (Publishers Weekly, starred review) in the Sherlock Society middle...

AR: 4.9

Lexile: 770

Shirley & Jamila save their summer
Goerz, Gillian
Paper Book
This middle-grade graphic novel for fans of Roller Girl and Smile introduces Jamila and Shirley, two unlikely friends who save each other's summers while solving their neighborhood's biggest mysteries. Jamila Waheed is staring down a lonely summer in a new...

AR: 2.8

Lexile: 490

Sisterhood of sleuths
Bertman, Jennifer Chambliss
Paper Book
A clever and thought-provoking mystery that pays homage to classic Nancy Drew stories, perfect for fans of Wendy Mass and Trenton Lee Stewart. Maizy always assumed she knew everything about her grandmother, Jacuzzi.?So?when a box full of vintage Nancy Drew books gets left at...

AR: 5.1

Lexile: N/A

Stella and the mystery of the missing tooth
Ewing, Clothilde
Paper Book
In this effervescent companion to the picture book Stella Keeps the Sun Up, Stella goes on the hunt to figure out who's behind her friend's missing tooth. Stella, her bestie Roger, and her second-best friend Owen are excited to go see Sue the T-rex at the museum, but when...

AR: N/A

Lexile: 510

Wallace and Grace take the case
Alexander, Heather
Paper Book
Two owl detectives solve the mysteries in this charming early reader series, perfect for fans of the Owl Diaries. These best friends are partners in the Night Owl Detective Agency and work together to solve mysteries! Wallace and Grace meet a rabbit who is sure he...

AR: 2.7

Lexile: 490

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https://librarian.syndetics.com/syndeticsunbound/lp/944.1309/list/7195

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