Closed for the Season: A Mystery Story by Mary Downing Hahn.
Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs.

The mystery:
Who killed old Mrs. Donaldson?
Who murdered Henry Hippo?

The setting:
Magic Forest, Virginia’s defunct, kudzu-covered theme park.
FunJungle, America’s newest theme park/zoo located in the Texas Hill Country.

The detectives:
Logan Forbes, who just moved into the murdered woman’s house, and his sidekick, rude, bookish, misfit Arthur Jenkins, who lives next door.
Teddy Roosevelt Fitzroy, the son of a gorilla expert and a wildlife photographer, and his new friend, Samantha MacCracken, daughter of the millionaire owner of FunJungle, JJ MacCracken.

The suspects: Too many to count. In both books, I was kept guessing till the very end. Thrills and chills. Danger and creepiness. Recommended reading for mystery fans of all ages.

The authors:
Mary Dowling Hahn has been writing children’s books for over thirty years, and she’s published almost thirty books. Her books run the gamut from mysteries to ghost stories to historical fiction to fantasy. I know I’ve read her books before, but I don’t actually recognize any of the titles. Hahn’s 1991 book Stepping on the Cracks won the Scot O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction.
Stuart Gibbs has written screenplays, but Belly Up is his first published novel. He has another novel, The Last Musketeer, due out next fall.

I was quite absorbed by both of these mystery thrillers, but I would give the edge to Belly Up. I’m sure neither author expected anyone to compare the two books in the first place, but they do have a lot in common. Kudos to Stuart Gibbs for such a fast and funny debut novel, and the same to Ms. Hahn for the latest entry in a body of work that’s kept kids entertained for many years.

You can’t go wrong by picking up either of these, but if you have to choose which one to read first, check out Belly Up. After all, an exploding hippo trumps almost anything!

Other takes on Belly Up:
Jennifer at 5 Minutes for Books: “Animal lovers, and zoo or theme park afficianados will appreciate the insider info given about these industries. As a former Texan, I also enjoyed the accurate portrayal of that area.”

Debbie Winkler: “Because of the setting and the workers, I got to learn all kinds of things that I never knew about animals and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Due to Stuart Gibbs’ engaging writing style, I never felt like I was getting an info dump on animals that I didn’t care about.”

Mark Carstairs: ” It’s hard in a kids’ mystery to balance the need for the main character to investigate without making the adults seem like bad parents. That was handled here perfectly. And it changed as the book progressed, although keeping things realistic.”

Other takes on Closed for the Season:
Jen Robinson’s Book Page: “This combination of realistic interpersonal dynamics with atmospheric, suspenseful mystery is sure to please kids. Especially those kids who aren’t athletes, and have been known to spend an afternoon or two in the local library.”

ReadingJunky’s Reading Roost: “The murder, the possibility of the killer’s involvement in embezzlement, and the bulldozing of a local, historic amusement park all combine for some great adventure.”

Both Closed for the Season and Belly Up have been nominated for the 2010 Cybils Awards in the Middle Grade Fiction category.