PDF TwoMinute Mysteries Apple Paperbacks Donald J Sobol Books

Product details Age Range 12 and up Grade Level 7 and up Lexile Measure 820L (What's this?) Paperback 160 pages Publisher Scholastic Paperbacks; Reprint edition (November 1, 1991) Language English ISBN-10 0590447874

TwoMinute Mysteries Apple Paperbacks Donald J Sobol Books Reviews

• I use these mysteries in my classroom as extra credit. Some are still appropriate for today's students, but others are no longer relevant given advances in technology, etc. You just have to sift through them in order to figure out which will work for your intended audience. I personally love them and think they are great tools for teaching inference and thinking skills.
• I have been reading my son (and having him read) Encyclopedia Brown books for several months. We've read at least 5 or 6 of them, each with several stories in them. I began to feel that my son was getting a little tired of the formula of Encyclopedia Brown and began looking for a new, non-Encyclopedia Brown book of short mysteries.
  
  There are many out there, but I felt some were above the head of a 7-8 year old or too old or too acedemically-focused.
  
  Since I knew that Donald Sobol had written mysteries at just the right level for my son, I thought it was perfect that he had another, non-Encyclopedia Brown series.
  
  Unfortunately, as soon as I opened it to the first story, I realized these stories are just recycled, abridged versions of the Encylopedia Brown stories! (I don't know which one came first, but they are the same mysteries, nevertheless). This was a big disappointment, as I was looking for *new* stories. As it is, I will not be reading any of these to my son because he either already knows the answers or I wouldn't want to ruin the longer Encyclopedia Brown stories we haven't read yet. So the book is essentially useless to me.
  
  I realize my situation is probably not usual, but I thought it important to share this information with others who might want to choose between these condensed stories or the fuller Encyclopedia Brown stories.
  
  As for the mysteries themselves, they share the same plusses and minuses as the Encyclopedia Brown stories (clever, concise, but dated and sometimes obtuse). The only difference is the stories are shorter and you get 79 of them in one book than about 9 or 10. Each story is about 1/3 to 1/4 as long as the Encyclopedia Brown stories, with an adult inspector and no illustrations.
• Still looking for and comparing all mystery books to an old book I read to my 4th-5th grade students- a book of mysteries that was a perfect level for them to understood and solve while challenging and stretching their minds... While this is a good book, it is not quite as good as that oldie but goodie...
• I teacher junior high. I use these mysteries to help my students look past the obviously and back up their claims with textual evidence. They are also great for when we need a break in testing or in the last few weeks of school. Some of the solutions are strange and slightly out of modern context, but I am selective about which ones I share. They are also good for listening practice too.
• It's good, but getting dated. As others have posted, a few answers cannot be deduced, but instead depend on the assumptions of 1970s middle class culture. The stories are a bit more grown up, but not too much. My nine year old usually gets the Encyclopedia Brown stories but struggles with these, even when the answer is based on facts and not dated assumptions.
• I enjoy reading these with my kids (9 and 12 yrs old) but they have not been able to solve any of the first 10 stories. Maybe when they are a bit older they will have better luck. I would say high school would be a more appropriate time. But the book itself is great.
• I have looked and looked for this book. I had one many years ago and it got lost during a move. It keeps my mind sharp. Much more interesting than working a crossword puzzle.