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Investigators of the Unknown #3
A Message from the Match Girl
In search of the truth about his heritage, Walter only finds more mystery
Walter Kew has grown up without a past. Orphaned since birth and raised by his grandparents, he knows nothing about his parents, who died in an accident. Obsessively curious about the mother he never knew, he turns to the occult, using Ouija boards, crystal balls, and spells to reach out to the other world. But he's never had any luck--until now. Walking home from school, Walter hears what he thinks is his mother's voice--faint, but very real. Although he can't quite understand her words, he's convinced she's trying to tell him something. With his friends Georgina and Poco, he looks for clues. Their quest takes them to a statue of the Little Match Girl in the park, where infant Walter was once photographed with his mother. As the three investigators chase the mystery, Walter will learn more about his past--and his present--than he ever thought possible. This ebook features a personal history by Janet Taylor Lisle including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author's own collection.
Walter Kew has grown up without a past. Orphaned since birth and raised by his grandparents, he knows nothing about his parents, who died in an accident. Obsessively curious about the mother he never knew, he turns to the occult, using Ouija boards, crystal balls, and spells to reach out to the other world. But he's never had any luck--until now. Walking home from school, Walter hears what he thinks is his mother's voice--faint, but very real. Although he can't quite understand her words, he's convinced she's trying to tell him something. With his friends Georgina and Poco, he looks for clues. Their quest takes them to a statue of the Little Match Girl in the park, where infant Walter was once photographed with his mother. As the three investigators chase the mystery, Walter will learn more about his past--and his present--than he ever thought possible. This ebook features a personal history by Janet Taylor Lisle including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author's own collection.
Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1995
45 people want to read
About the author
Janet Taylor Lisle
43 books50 followersJanet Taylor Lisle was born in Englewood, New Jersey, and grew up in Farmington, Connecticut, spending summers on the Rhode Island coast.The eldest child and only daughter of an advertising executive and an architect, she attended local schools and at fifteen entered The Ethel Walker School, a girl’s boarding school in Simsbury, Connecticut.
After graduation from Smith College, she joined VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America). She lived and worked for the next several years in Atlanta, Georgia, organizing food-buying cooperatives in the city’s public housing projects, and teaching in an early-childcare center. She later enrolled in journalism courses at Georgia State University. This was the beginning of a reporting career that extended over the next ten years.
With the birth of her daughter, Lisle turned from journalism to writing projects she could accomplish at home. In 1984, The Dancing Cats of Appesap, her first novel for children, was published by Bradbury Press (Macmillan.) Subsequently, she has published sixteen other novels. Her fourth novel, Afternoon of the Elves (Orchard Books) won a 1990 Newbery Honor award and was adapted as a play by the Seattle Children’s Theater in 1993. It continues to be performed throughout the U.S. Theater productions of the story have also been mounted in Australia and The Netherlands.
Lisle’s novels for children have received Italy’s Premio Andersen Award, Holland’s Zilveren Griffel, and Notable and Best Book distinction from the American Library Association, among other honors. She lives with her husband, Richard Lisle, on the Rhode Island coast, the scene for Black Duck(2006), The Crying Rocks (2003) and The Art of Keeping Cool, which won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction in 2001.
After graduation from Smith College, she joined VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America). She lived and worked for the next several years in Atlanta, Georgia, organizing food-buying cooperatives in the city’s public housing projects, and teaching in an early-childcare center. She later enrolled in journalism courses at Georgia State University. This was the beginning of a reporting career that extended over the next ten years.
With the birth of her daughter, Lisle turned from journalism to writing projects she could accomplish at home. In 1984, The Dancing Cats of Appesap, her first novel for children, was published by Bradbury Press (Macmillan.) Subsequently, she has published sixteen other novels. Her fourth novel, Afternoon of the Elves (Orchard Books) won a 1990 Newbery Honor award and was adapted as a play by the Seattle Children’s Theater in 1993. It continues to be performed throughout the U.S. Theater productions of the story have also been mounted in Australia and The Netherlands.
Lisle’s novels for children have received Italy’s Premio Andersen Award, Holland’s Zilveren Griffel, and Notable and Best Book distinction from the American Library Association, among other honors. She lives with her husband, Richard Lisle, on the Rhode Island coast, the scene for Black Duck(2006), The Crying Rocks (2003) and The Art of Keeping Cool, which won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction in 2001.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 9, 2017
A young boy, looking into his past, learns that he was adopted by his grandparents and had been left on their doorstep as a baby. After receiving a clue, a photo of himself with his mother at a nearby park, he starts finding gifts from her at a statue of 'the little match girl'.
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I've had this book since I was.... 12-ish, if not younger. No idea it was part of a series 'til now.
I remember enjoying it, I think. Might be a bit dated, I guess - the finding a baby on your doorstep and just getting to keep it is definitely stretching believability (from an adult viewpoint, at least). Kid's book logic, though...
It's another one in kind of in a supernatural 'grey' area, too. There might be ghosts, might just be an (absent) parent checking in then leaving again, and not being caught. Plus one the girls may or may not talk with animals (she definitely talks to, much to the third friends' embarrassment).
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I've had this book since I was.... 12-ish, if not younger. No idea it was part of a series 'til now.
I remember enjoying it, I think. Might be a bit dated, I guess - the finding a baby on your doorstep and just getting to keep it is definitely stretching believability (from an adult viewpoint, at least). Kid's book logic, though...
It's another one in kind of in a supernatural 'grey' area, too. There might be ghosts, might just be an (absent) parent checking in then leaving again, and not being caught. Plus one the girls may or may not talk with animals (she definitely talks to, much to the third friends' embarrassment).
November 28, 2016
I think this book has a lot of potential and could have been made into a longer story. I would like to hear about Walter and his life; does he discover who his parents are? does he continue to hear voices? Does Juliette, the cat, belong to a witch or is she a witch herself? I liked the story but I felt like there could have been more.
November 25, 2024
It was a lovely story but a bit weird
January 22, 2008
Pretty Good Book...Suspenseful... In conclusion a good book to read in your spare time
June 16, 2009
magic, spirits, the occult
October 29, 2009
Magic & mystery mixed with everyday life for an orphaned boy. A suspenseful, touching story.
November 17, 2013
really good keeps you on the edge of your toes
Want to read
April 21, 2017I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13118805
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13118805
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews