Snoop Troop: It Came from Beneath the Playground

In this wisecracking launch to the Snoop Troop series, fourth-grade budding detective Logan Lang tries to figure out who has stolen the merry-go-round out of the local amusement park. This theft is followed by the disappearance of other fun things like video games and playground equipment, and then comes the demand: "criminal moles" deliver the message that the children at Murkee Elementary School must turn over their lunch money in order for the stolen items to be returned. Logan and her extremely enthusiastic partner, Gustavo Muchomacho, attempt to identify the mastermind behind the plot, and so do readers, who are invited to find items hidden in Scroggs's illustrations, sketch suspects, and unscramble clues. Scroggs (the Wiley & Grampa's Creature Features series) tells much of the story through illustrated comics-style sequences packed with visual puns, and his narrator dials up the comedy with sardonic, metafictional commentary and similes that spoof overserious detective dramas ("like a masseuse wearing boxing gloves, it rubs Logan the wrong way"). A rollicking mystery that bodes well for the books to come. Ages 6%E2%80%939. Agent: Joanna Volpe, New Leaf Literary & Media. (Sept.)