A Recipe for Robbery: Mystery at the Biltmore #3
by Colleen Nelson

4 out of 5 stars

Elodie runs a detective business in her apartment building, and she gets called in to help when a famous recipe is stolen. The chef is desperate to get the recipes back in time for the opening of their new bakery. Elodie is joined by her dog, Carnegie, and her neighbor, Oscar, who loves tumbling and acrobatics. Most adults don’t take a child detective seriously, but Elodie is determined to prove herself. She follows the clues and regards everyone as a suspect, but all the neighbors are so nice. None of them would steal the recipes… would they?

The Family Under the Bridge
by Natalie Savage Carlson, Garth Williams (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Armand is happy to live the free life of a hobo in Paris. He has no ties, takes odd jobs and begs for a few coins to buy food, and he sleeps under a bridge. But when a homeless mother with three young children takes up a corner of his bridge, Armand is worried that he will get tangled up in their problems. The children start to call him “grandpa”, and before long Armand is entertaining the children and teaching them to sing for coins on street corners while their mother is working during the day. The children are sure that Father Christmas will give them a house for their Christmas present, so Armand decides to find some way to get the family a true home.