Find more great Horn Book content at these links:

Interviews with authors and illustrators
Recommended books: reviews and themed booklists
App and e-book reviews
Movie reviews
Event news and recaps
Events calendar

Smart books for all kids

by Martha V. Parravano
Mar 09, 2011 | Filed in Articles & Opinion
Ellen Raskin was thinking outside the box before most of us even knew there was a box. A writer, an illustrator, a designer -- she combined them all into a profession she called bookmaking. In her novels, the typeface is as much an element as the mystery/puzzle plot, which is as integral as the wordplay, which also shows up in the illustrations....

When Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Me won the Newbery Medal in 2010, many critics and readers traced its lineage back not only to the 1963 winner A Wrinkle in Time but also to The Westing Game, a puzzle wrapped in a mystery wrapped in a coming-of-age novel, which won in 1979. Now Dutton has brought back into print Raskin’s three remaining novels: Figgs & Phantoms (1974, and a Newbery Honor Book), The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel) (1971), and The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues (1975).

All of them welcome the reader in as a participant in solving the mystery or completing the quest; all of them speak to both head and heart (especially Figgs & Phantoms, one of the most poignant explorations of grief I’ve ever read). They are smart books, but they don’t exclude anybody; they’re for all kids.
Martha V. Parravano

Martha V. Parravano is a contributing editor to The Horn Book, Inc., and co-author of the Calling Caldecott blog.

2 COMMENTS
Comment Policy:
  • Be respectful, and do not attack the author, people mentioned in the article, or other commenters. Take on the idea, not the messenger.
  • Don't use obscene, profane, or vulgar language.
  • Stay on point. Comments that stray from the topic at hand may be deleted.
  • Comments may be republished in print, online, or other forms of media.
  • If you see something objectionable, please let us know. Once a comment has been flagged, a staff member will investigate.
Fill out the form or Login / Register to comment:
(All fields required)

Elizabeth Law

>I'm fascinated to see Figgs & Phantoms described as a poignant exploration of grief--I remember it more as an exploration of the artist's life. Thanks to your write up, Martha, I'm going to reread it. As for The Westing Game, I reread that every five years or so. I highly recommend that fans seek out the anniversary edition of that book published by Dutton about 8 years ago--it has a memorable foreword written by the book's editor, Ann Durell.

Posted : Mar 09, 2011 07:21

Catherine

>Loved Figgs & Phantoms and The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel)--and of course The Westing Game. All a lot of fun, I'm so glad they are being reissued. Long overdue, in my opinion. Never read The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues. It's on my list.

Posted : Mar 09, 2011 06:35

RELATED 

OUT OF THE BOX

G-O-T T-O G-O, It’s Almost Passover!
by Shoshana Flax
OUT OF THE BOX

Laurie Halse Anderson "Salon" with Porter Square Books
by Elissa Gershowitz
OUT OF THE BOX

Week in Review, March 31st-April 4th
by Horn Book
OUT OF THE BOX

May/June 2025 Horn Book Magazine starred reviews
by Horn Book
OUT OF THE BOX

World Autism Awareness Day
by Horn Book
OUT OF THE BOX

Announcing the Countalott Award!
by Horn Book
More
RECOMMENDED
ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?