More Five-Minute Mysteries

Christine Linge is a past director of the Toronto & District Parent
Co-operative Preschool Corporation, a freelance writer, and a bookseller
specializing in children’s literature.

Ken Weber presents 14 brief scenarios, combining character dialogue with
occasional narrator’s comments, to convey the facts of a small drama
or puzzle. Some of the stories describe clues about a crime
(shoplifting, suspected murder), while others require logic or
arithmetic to solve them (which child was born in 1986, if A is older
than B, etc.) Cartoonlike black-and-white pictures illustrate each
mystery, sometimes adding visual clues. In the back of the book is a
single hint to help solve each mystery, and after that, the solutions to
the questions posed in each story.

Every word in this “Kidz Radio” volume is transcribed verbatim from
the audiocassette, so the written text reads like the script of an
old-style radio detective show. However, since the book contains no
additional material, it is possible that the child/sleuth will only
listen to the audiotape, wherein the broadly drawn character types and
voice acting are best realized.

Most of the “mysteries” are original puzzles, although a couple may
be well known. While many of them have clever solutions, a few are
ambiguous or confusing. The set will be used only once, and perhaps
incorrectly (it is very tempting for the user to allow the tape to
proceed to the solution after little or no pause for deliberation). As a
recreational activity, More Five-Minute Mysteries is an expensive 45
minutes. Recommended with reservations.