Mudshark - by Gary Paulsen (Paperback)

About the Book

Mudshark is the go-to guy for any mystery that needs solving. That is, until the Psychic Parrot takes up residence in the school library. With an escaped gerbil and an eraser thief on the loose, the school needs someone who's good at solving problems.

Book Synopsis

The Mudshark Detective Agency is on the case in a winning tale from Gary Paulsen, about whom Booklist writes in a starred review, "When it comes to telling funny stories about boys, no one surpasses Paulsen."

Mudshark is cool. He's fast-thinking and fast-moving, and with his photographic memory, he's the go-to guy with the answers. Lost your shoe? Your dad's car? Can't find your homework? Ask Mudshark. At least, until the Psychic Parrot takes up residence in the school library.

The word in school is that the parrot can out-think Mudshark. And right now, the school needs someone who's good at solving problems. There's an escaped gerbil running the halls, a near-nuclear emergency in the faculty restroom, and an unexplained phenomenon involving disappearing erasers. Once Mudshark solves the mystery of the erasers, he plans to investigate the Psychic Parrot. . . .

In Mudshark, Paulsen introduces readers to a resourceful boy who will have kids everywhere thinking, and laughing.

Review Quotes

Review, FamilyFun, June 2009:
"A master of lively, highly accessible prose, Paulsen offers much in this short read, from kooky characters to stringent satire."

About the Author

Gary Paulsen is the distinguished author of many critically acclaimed books for young people, including three Newbery Honor books: The Winter Room, Hatchet, and Dogsong. His novel The Haymeadow received the Western Writers of America Golden Spur Award.

Among his Random House books are Woods Runner; Notes from the Dog; Lawn Boy; The Legend of Bass Reeves; The Amazing Life of Birds; The Time Hackers; Molly McGinty Has a Really Good Day; The Quilt (a companion to Alida's Song and The Cookcamp); The Glass Café; How Angel Peterson Got His Name; Guts: The True Stories Behind Hatchet and the Brian books; The Beet Fields; Soldier's Heart; Brian's Return, Brian's Winter, and Brian's Hunt (companions to Hatchet); Father Water, Mother Woods; Woods Runner; and five books about Francis Tucket's adventures in the Old West. Gary Paulsen has also published fiction and nonfiction for adults, as well as picture books illustrated by his wife, the painter Ruth Wright Paulsen. Their most recent book is Canoe Days. They live in Alaska and New Mexico.

You can visit him on the Web at www.garypaulsen.com.