Timmy Failure, Stephan Pastis's (Pearls Before Swine) detective of greatness, returns with his 1,500-pound pet polar bear in another comical mystery to be solved by Total Failure Inc.
As with Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made, Pastis starts with a small-time crime. Classmate Nunzio Benedici's Spooney Spoon goes missing. One of the book's abundant drawings depicts the utensil: "Don't ask me why there's a dog's head on it," says Timmy. His fee remains the same: $4 a day plus expenses. And readers will once again decipher the clues before Timmy does. But there's a bigger mystery here: Superintendent Dobbs's globe disappears, and a multi-school contest invites students to earn a $500 prize if they find the culprit. Timmy's mother has lost her job, so the two move in with great-aunt Colander, widow to a wealthy businessman, and a would-be entrepreneur herself if only her Boom Boom Shoewheels would take off (picture roller skates without the boots).
Great-aunt Colander is the gem of the series thus far. She truly "gets" and seeks out Timmy, and she's the resourceful and clear-eyed antidote to the discombobulated detective. She stands by him, and he treats her like a normal person, unlike the charity board members with whom she serves (who mainly want her inheritance). Bobble-headed Rollo, starry-eyed Molly Moskins, and the One Whose Name Shall Not Be Uttered (Corrina Corrina) all return as well as great-aunt Colander's topiary-sculpting gardener named Bingo. This heartwarming companion will make Timmy's fans even more eager for the third adventure, planned for this coming November. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness