Who Stole Halloween?: A Chickadee Court Mystery

Chickadee Court Mysteries #2

by Martha Freeman

Halloween the cat is missing, stolen right from her bed in the middle of the night. Then one by one other neighborhood cats disappear. Is the Harvey house ghost to blame? Will he strike again? It's up to Alex and Yasmeen to find out.

Genres: Mystery, Childrens, Middle Grade, Halloween, Humor, Cats, Juvenile

161 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

Martha Freeman was born in Southern California in 1956. It is not actually true that pterodactyls ruled the skies then, but her three children believe this.

Martha graduated from Glenoaks Elementary, Woodrow Wilson Junior High, and Glendale High School. Until Martha came along, Glendale High's most famous graduate was a fellow named Marion Michael Morrison. He later went into the film game and changed his name to John Wayne, which you might very well do, too, if you were a boy named Marion in unenlightened times. In 1978, Martha graduated from Stanford University with a degree in history. She remains Stanford's most illustrious graduate if not its most wealthy.
Stink Bomb Mom

Martha's First Book.

Martha worked as a newspaper reporter, copy editor, substitute teacher, college lecturer, advertising copywriter, and freelance magazine writer before she found her true calling as a writer of children's books in 1994. Her first book was "Stink Bomb Mom," now, tragically, out of print. She has since published 14 more books for children and as you read this, she is probably working on another one. Besides writing and visiting schools to talk to students, Martha teaches occasional classes at Penn State University, volunteers as an emergency medical technician, and works for a wonderful little company called Wall Street Communications. She is a very busy person.

Reviews

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

“’I don’t see how he can say it any more clearly. He liked being the undercover kitty. He was proud to serve his fellow felines.’”

Who Stole Halloween? was a great book! It was funny, cute, and had two mysteries in one! I highly recommend any parent or babysit to buy or read this to children!

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must have read this more than a dozen times as a kid, it was a staple of the Halloween season for me. Somehow, even knowing the solution to the mystery, I loved it more each time. I have no memory of what it's about (all I remember are cat-nappings, and some kind of newspaper maybe?) but here's four stars to the books that enthralled us as children.

[Christine · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first book I read by Martha Freeman, Who Stole the Twelve Days of Christmas was funny, a bit exciting for a young reader, and definitely something a young detective-wanna be would dream about. Who Stole Halloween was creepy and somewhat disturbing. The children decide to investigate a rash of cat-nappings. The cat-napper is stealing cats who are neglected by their owners. However, their investigation leads them to the mystery of a grisly murder in a mansion turned health food store in their neighborhood. The murder mystery involves a husband who kills his wife in a jealous rage and gets away with it. Then the husband is found murdered, slashed, stabbed, etc. with the cat nearby "licking something red and sticky" from its paws. The cat is then drowned in a pond. The owner of the now health food store finds an old fireplace with remnants of burned clothing and the kids solve the mystery of the murders. Then they solve the mystery of the missing cats. It was their beloved teacher who was taking the cats, shaving them and making "natural remedies" using their fur and selling it to the health food store. The boy's dad has been taking these pills. Creepy. Not funny. Would not recommend. I wish I had read it before my daughter because I don't think I would have allowed her to read it. She didn't enjoy it.

[❤Marie Gentilcore · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kids and I finished this last night and we all enjoyed it very much. It was a fun mystery that kept us guessing. We didn't guess who the catnapper of Halloween was but I was able to guess the side mystery about who really killed Mr. Harvey (but the kids didn't know). All in all, this was a very satisfying read and we will look for more mysteries by Martha Freeman. The kids and I really liked the two main characters, kid detectives: Alex and Yasmeen.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Admittedly, I'm partial to detective books, but this was adorable. Two kids, one the son of a police detective and one the daughter of professors, try to solve the case of the missing cats. I love how the narrator explains his thinking - a great voice! I also love how the kids work with adults and in spite of adults. Great story.

[BRNTerri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wasn't good at all. No part was believable, especially the mystery surrounding the stolen cats. Both main characters are ten years old yet talk like teens or adults, especially Yasmeen. If you didn't know their ages and the main characters weren't on the cover, you'd have never guessed their correct ages. And I have no idea which cat that is on the cover. The cat named Halloween belongs to an older kid named Kyle and is an all black female, and main character Alex's cat is orange. We're told three times that Kyle is "pale", like that's a bad thing.

There's a second mystery in this involving a possible ghost and a murder from the late 19th century and it was so unnecessary to put two mysteries into one short book. The kids solved both mysteries on Halloween night. The catnapper mystery is solved Halloween night and the other mystery is solved the next day. There's repeated talk of a bloody crime scene with both main characters trying to figure out who murdered the person over 100 years ago. In actuality children that age wouldn't be involved with subject matter so dark, period, and those parts of the book aren't appropriate for the kids this middle grade book is marketed towards, ages 8-12. The only part I liked is something they did to Alex's cat Luau to help them catch the serial catnapper.

[Janice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cats are disappearing in Yasmeen and Alex's neighborhood so the two sleuths go searching for the catnappers. It's rumored to be a ghost based on the tale of a double murder. Husband kills wife for having a beau and cat kills husband for killing mistress. Ghost of man collects cats around Halloween. Alex and Yasmeen with help from stuck-up Sophie discovered pre-school teacher collecting cats rumored to be abused and using them to make home remedies by shaving them and using the fur. Alex's dad bought some to help his eyesight.

Cute story. Murder story is gruesome so middle grade, not lower elementary.

[Amanda Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Really cute. This one is for cat lovers like me! I wish there was a little more “Halloween theme” in it. Also too long for middle grade, the story could’ve been trimmed down. Take that “criticism” with a grain of salt though- long middle grade books are kind of a pet peeve of mine unless they’re unbelievably captivating. The reason behind the catnapping was a little funny, I would’ve liked a stronger and more believable conclusion. The characterization was great in this book! Overall, a super fun read.

[Kaleb Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book, and it was a good book. This book was a fun little mystery book. I really enjoyed the plot of this story and the little cat. The ending was a great part of the book because it was a surprise and I would recommend reading this book. I only rated this book 3 out of 5 stars because I personally didn’t find that entertaining for me because I like different kinds of books, however this one would be a great book for anyone looking for a fun mystery book about Halloween.

[Mere · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Halloween, I love cats, and I love books that combine them both. A fun mystery for kids to read, for sure. I read it in one sitting, and it was an entertaining ride to say the least.

I thought Freeman did a fun little detective mystery with young kids, and their efforts to solve it -- including their cat. There isn't much more to say about it other than give it a try!

[Samantha Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this would be a great book to do a read out loud with to students in Elementary school, especially around Halloween. This book shows how two kids can be investigators of the catnapping when they work together and use their resources.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silly, but entertaining. The ghost story is darker than I was expecting for such a young audience, but made it more interesting for me. Could have done without the weirdly antagonistic dynamic between Alex's parents though.

[Rebecca (booksandbreggs) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super cute story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. 4/5 stars.

[Andréa Boone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute little kids book!

[Ella · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a childhood favorite. Surprisingly, it holds up pretty well.

[Sandra Sweazy]

The kids loved it.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

a halloween staple for me growing up

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book

Great book. Clever mystery. I recommend this and all other chickadee court mysteries. It was hard to figure out but it made sense once Martha explained the answer.

[Ruth Castellano · Rating 3 out of 5]

Such a cutie halloween read and very nostalgic for me!

[Laura Merrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who is stealing black cats in the neighborhood and why? Cute middle grade mystery series.

[Hamzah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a sequel to the book "Who stole the Twelve Days of Christmas?" This is a about two kids named Alex and Yasmeen who already solved who stole the twelve days of christmas. When they were brought to a grave by Alex's cat,Luau, they find a paper saying someone lost a cat named Halloween. Then, Alex's mother,who's a police officer, says there's two other missing cats, then more and more. Kyle, Halloween's owner, has a sister who said the put poison in his cat's ear. Also, Kyle thinks it is a ghost who took his cat. So, they prepare to solve another mystery.

I liked this book because it seemed like one of those books that just grab my attention. I like that the author made us think that someone stole Halloween itself and made us start reading it. That worked for me, and I just wanted to read more. I didn't read the first book yet, but I probably will read it.

I reccommend this book for people who like mysteries, but if they read the end first, it will ruin the whole entire story. However, the real culprit is not who you really expect it to be. In fact, Alex and Yasmeen don't even suspect him (or her!)

[Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book reminds me of somethings like other mystery shows and other books like Everlost and books like that. This book has me on pins and needles most of the time. I will give this book 5 stars.

[Mary Kevan]

Alex and his friend Yasmeen are on their second mystery, How Stole Halloween? You may be thinking that they stole the holiday Halloween, but the real mystery is who stole Halloween, the neighbor’s cat. Alex and Yasmeen, 11 year olds, where walking through the grave yard one day and they saw a flyer wedged in one of the stones. The flyer read, missing cat, named Halloween. Alex and Yasmeen being young kids want to help. They notice that many more cats in the neighborhood go missing. There is a legend of an unsolved mystery from 100 years ago. Is a ghost the one causing all the trouble or is it a mischievous person? With the help of their smart cat can Alex and Yasmeen save the day before it’s too late?

This is an also an easy read but it keeps you on the edge of your seat the whole time your reading.

Genre- Mystery

[Caralyn]

Rae, my niece, added this book to her Goodreads account, and so I promptly requested it from the public library. Paulman read it first, and he read it in one sitting! After finishing some of the Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter, I picked up this little gem on a Sunday morning. The plot moved so quickly, and the characters were so charming that I, too, gulped it down in one day. I'm a fan of imagining the thoughts of animals, and Luau, the main character's orange tiger cat, has a sweet young owner who imagines what his cat might be thinking, like in this scene:
"The dream woke me at six, and I couldn't fall back to sleep. Luau was awake, too, lying on my feet, blinking at me and purring, which meant, I love you, Alex, I love you so---especially when you give me catnip. (p.51)

[Critter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used to love mystery books a lot more when I was younger and Who Stole Halloween was among my favorites. I read this book a countless number of times. The characters were amazing and so were the cats that were involved in the story. There are two mysteries that were involved in this book. One of them involved a murder. This mystery was a bit gruesome and creepier than the other. The other mystery involved disappearing cats. The mystery of the missing cats was resolved in a fun and cute manner. I also love Alex's cat Luau who has held a place in my heart for a long time.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a great mystery for kids. It was easy to follow with very believable characters. It also appealed to my animal loving reluctant reader with the primary mystery being a catnapping. As an added bonus they had a secondary mystery that revolved around halloween with, of course, a cat thrown in. I think this would be a fabulous classroom read-aloud and will suggest it to my daughter's teacher for next year. Great book!

[Cassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who Stole Halloween? was adorable. I would probably recommend the book to kids around third or fourth grade. There is a whole subplot concerning how a man murdered his wife and then his cat (supposedly) killed him, so I wouldn't recommend reading this to really young kids. Also, although the series is cumulative it isn't necessary to read the books prior to this one for Who Stole Halloween? to make sense.

Overall, Who Stole Halloween? is a funny and suspenseful kids detective story.

[Sanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because it was a blue bonnet book for when I was in third grade I love mystery books and I like this 1 too especially because it wasnt just 1 mystery but more I just loved trying to figure out what really happened and who actually stole halloween and it's definitely not who or what you expect this is a really good book and I definitely recommend it

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Delightful little solve-along mystery book! The ending stops just short of Scooby-Doo, but I don't think kids will mind that. Alex, who narrates, is not nearly as well characterized as Yasmeen (the sidekick) is, and I found myself wishing she was narrating instead so there would be a bit more personality to the book.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be fair... this book and the rest of them were written by my sister. I am always very proud to read and write reviews for her. She is an awesome writer and I think most kids will love her books and can relate to her characters!