Jigsaw: Mystery in the Mail
by Bob Graham ; illus. by the author
Primary     Candlewick    40 pp.     g
7/22     978-1-5362-2499-3     $18.99

Graham, an expert in spinning affectionate stories from the details of ordinary family life (see most recently Ellie’s Dragon , rev. 11/20), here tackles the ubiquitous mystery of the missing jigsaw-puzzle piece. The Kelly family members—Mom, Dad, Kitty, Katie, and dog Lucy—receive a jigsaw puzzle in the mail from an anonymous giver that depicts an “African sunrise.” Over the course of the next year, the family completes the puzzle. Well, almost. What the reader knows from the illustrations is that one piece was accidentally thrown out in the trash the very day the puzzle arrived. When the Kellys discover the problem, they go into overdrive, visiting the giant paper recycling warehouse in a wild, hopeful quest. Graham’s fans will know to expect a miracle. His squiggly, interrupted pen line can render even a pile of wastepaper dynamic, and the cadence of his text makes the ordinary grand. “There were letters of love from faraway places, letters of sorrow, notes of forgiveness, bus tickets, train tickets, cards saying ‘thank you,’ and newspapers old and forgotten in time.” Obviously inspired by our stay-at-home lives over the past couple of years, this timely tale is a celebration of wishful thinking.

From the September/October 2022 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.