Arf

Bowser and Birdie #2

by Spencer Quinn

"Spencer Quinn speaks two languages -- suspense and dog -- fluently." -- Stephen King Why would anyone break into 19 Gentilly Lane? That's where the Gaux family lives, and everyone knows they have nothing worth stealing. More important, the house is usually guarded by Birdie Gaux's dog, Bowser, a large and handsome fellow with a big set of sharp teeth.Now Birdie is looking worried and Bowser is on the trail of something rotten. Who was behind the break-in? Why is a girl with green hair asking odd questions about what happened to Birdie's dad, a policeman who was killed in the line of duty years ago? Worst of all, why is the whole town starting to stink of limeade aftershave and CAT?!? The death of Birdie's father may be a cold case, but Bowser can tell it's heating up fast. Someone is coming after Birdie and her family, and Bowser must be ready to protect them from anything. Even that awful cat.

Genres: Mystery, Animals, Fiction, Dogs, Audiobook, Middle Grade, Childrens

304 pages, Hardcover

First published April 26, 2016

About the author

Spencer Quinn lives on Cape Cod with his dog Audrey, and is hard at work on the next Chet and Bernie adventure.

Spencer Quinn is a pseudonym of author Peter Abrahams.

Series:
* A Chet and Bernie Mystery

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

The detective in this middle-grade mystery is 11-year-old Birdie Gaux, a clever gal who lives in a Louisiana bayou town with Mama, Grammy, and Bowser - her loyal pooch.



As the story opens two houses in the neighborhood have been broken into, including the Gaux residence. The Gaux family isn't missing anything but the neighbors report a missing pearl necklace.



What's this though? Has Birdie spotted the necklace in the neighbor lady's purse?

Soon after the burglaries a hippie girl shows up and befriends Birdie, asking questions about Birdie's dad - a cop who was killed ten years ago during a murder inquiry. At about the same time, a man passing through town takes an interest in Mama....and asks a lot of nosy questions about the Gaux house.



Soon enough someone goes missing, and Birdie and Bowser find the body in the bayou. Further inquiries reveal that everything that happened above is connected, and danger lurks around our intrepid young detective. But anyone threatening Birdie better watch out for Bowser!



The story is narrated by Bowser, a clever fellow who has a spot of trouble with math and idiomatic expressions.....but so what? Bowser is a really funny dog.



He's always surprised to realize it's HIM that's making that growling sound, and he's usually befuddled when he's scolded. What did he do wrong? Moreover, Bowser never misses an opportunity to squeeze himself between Birdie and anyone else...which made me laugh.

This is a well-written and entertaining middle-grade mystery, recommended to kids (and adults) who like these kinds of fun stories.

You can follow my reviews at http://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com/

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm really enjoying this new series by the author of the Chet and Bernie series. Actually at this point I'm enjoying it more than the Chet and Bernie series. Maybe I'm just liking 11 year old Birdie, her smart, faithful, and adoring dog Bowser, and her quirky family and friends and their small Louisiana bayou town more than what's been happening in the most recent Chet and Bernie books. Whatever it is, I hope the author keeps putting one of these books out every year as I've definitely become hooked on them. If the author ever decides to stop writing the Chet and Bernie series I will totally be okay with that as long as he keeps giving us new Birdie and Bowser stories.

[kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun!
The mystery here is told from the dog's point of view and his outlook on life is exactly what you'd think it would be. He thinks everything is great all the time, thinks Birdie is the best thing in the world and would do anything for her or to protect her.
The human characters are well drawn and believable. You can feel how Bowser experiences his world and events.
I hope there will be many more books in this series.
What's not to love?

[Robin Hatcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟
Audiobook (narrated by James Frangione)
Sometimes a kid’s mystery is just right for me. Enough danger happening but never truly gruesome details. Okay, I’m a wimp. I admit it. A kid’s book published by Scholastic also meant no foul language, another major plus IMHO. Yes, I plan to move on to a few more of these stories.

Robin’s Ratings
5🌟 = Out of this world. Amazing. Unforgettable. A personal favorite.
4🌟 = Loved/enjoyed it. Will recommend to others.
3🌟 = Liked it. Glad I read it. Engaging/entertaining/interesting.
2🌟 = The book was okay, but I’ve enjoyed other books so much more.
1🌟 = For whatever reason, I didn’t like it and can’t recommend it.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My nephew and I really liked Woof, so we picked this up. The first half of the book was a big snooze. We had to renew it at the library once because we were reading it so slowly. Then things finally picked up about half way through and didn't stop until the end. At that point my nephew declared it "awesome." I was slightly less enthusiastic but thankful it ended better than it started. The characters are delightfully quirky. Bowser's commentary is often very amusing.

Just like the first book, this one doesn't lend itself to reading aloud. Bowser's rambling narrative isn't quite as confusing as the first book (thankfully). There's still something ponderous and stilted about the conversations that makes it easy to read to myself but feels very awkward when reading aloud.

I was told that now we must read the third book, so I guess I'll be reviewing that soon!

[MarilynLovesNature · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audio which was very well done. An 11 year old girl and her dog are both great characters. The dog Bowser is narrator, so his way of seeing things is humorous much of the time. Unfortunately sometimes he's aware of dangers invisible to the human eye or brain and unable to verbalize this info to the humans, since he is a dog. The relationship with the girl, Birdie, her mother and grandmother is touching and sometimes humorous. Included is Birdie's desire to learn about her heroic father, who was killed when she was only a year old or so. In this story the mystery concerns the last unsolved murder her father was working on and another murder that happens during the story. I'm now going to read the other two mysteries in this series. I needed something lighthearted to read and this was perfect.

[Dan Shonka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spencer Quinn knows how to spin an entertaining tale. And this is exhibit A (for ARF). As in WOOF, Bowser, a dog, is the narrator (much like Chet is in the Chet & Bernie series). Mr. Quinn gives Bowser a great voice and point of view. (I suspect SQ crawls around on the floor with his dogs a great deal for research purposes.) Bowser's best buddy and owner is Birdie, and together they run into some funny business. And that's NOT funny-ha-ha. The intensity ramps up, and then way up! There are some twists carefully constructed, and for the dog in your house. . . bacon. If I had to guess, I'd peg Spencer Quinn as a baseball fan, too. One of Birdie's best friends, Rory, is a baseball player (mired in a huge slump). But the big clue is this: Birdie's other male friend has the last name of Tebbets. If Birdie grew up to marry this guy, she'd be Birdie Tebbets, sharing the name of one of the best catchers of the 40s, who played for the Detroit Tigers (among others). Come clean, Spencer. Who's your team?
In the mean time, if you haven't already tried one of Spencer Quinn's series, well what are you waiting for?! (You don't have to start at the beginning, but you should.) I'm still waiting for the next Chet & Bernie. (The last one nearly ripped my heart out.) By the way, Chet & Bernie are written more for adults (nothing too sexual, but more intense). Bowser & Birdie are written more for everybody.

[Gracie Dix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you have a pet? If you've checked out my Instagram feed @gracie.dix.author you know I do. Sandy and Snowball are the two best Bookstagram models ever! One thing they have in common with Bowser, the dog in this novel, is that they will protect their house. Good pups - more treats for you!
This is the second book in the Bowser and Birdie series, which I highly recommend if you love mystery, adventure and dogs - like me!

[Betsy · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I liked: a quick and easy to solve murder mystery.
What I didn't like: Bowser's constant surprise that he's growling. Lack of character development. The fact that a children's book can talk openly about suicide, but doesn't think that kids can understand that the book is from a dog's perspective without a million reminders (Bowser growls, Bowser barks, Bowser chases after sticks, Bowser overhears all of the important information but gets distracted only when things aren't important).

[Conor Morrissey · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is the adventure of Bowser the dog and Birdie the human. Birdies dad was a cop and died in the line of duty. One day bowser was home alone when a car passed by very slowley. Bowser knew that
something was up. So Bowser and Birdie continue to figure out more clues about her dads death.

[Elizabeth Dragina · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good ending to the mystery! I really enjoyed this book! A good read for teens who like just a dab of mystery. ( I personally would have enjoyed much more mystery, but oh well... )

[Amy Pickett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every bit as much fun as Woof, although a bit more violent. Bowser and Birdie for life!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun Birdie and Bowser mystery. What's not to love? In this one we find out about Birdie's father and the answers to his murder. A charming adventure.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful narration for the audiobook. Bowser, the dog, as narrator, was very believable as a dog. The story was full of humor and suspense; great mystery novel for middle grades.

[Jannene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laugh so much with this series. Who doesn’t love a book from a dog’s point of view? It makes me wonder if dogs really think those types of things!

[AUDREY · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heads-up, there may be some spoilers. The author is Spencer Quinn. I think this genre is mystery and adventure. My favorite part about this book was when Preston pushed Birdie to the ground and was threatening her, and then Birdie's loyal dog Bowser attacks Preston by biting him and chasing him. It was very funny. I would recommend this book to dog lovers and kids in middle school.

[Susan Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I checked out this audiobook, I didn’t notice it was a kids’ book. No worries! I enjoy kids’ movies, so why not books? I have read many YA novels and often enjoy them very much. And I have read several Chet and Bernie stories, and was hoping for more like them.

The narrator did a terrific job, adding depth to the characterization. I liked that the setting was in bayou country, a nice change from Chet and Bernie’s desert southwest. The plot was complex enough to hold my interest, and the many supporting characters were interesting, enriching the story. Also, Bowser was not a carbon copy of Chet, and Birdie was not simply a younger, female version of Bernie. Rather, they were unique characters who interacted with others and each other in their own way. Of course, Bowser’s doggie-ness did somewhat overlap with Chet’s, but in a good way.

These books are the perfect medicine for the blues, the blahs, lockdowns, or to re-set myself after reading something weighty and/or depressing. Pure entertainment!

My only gripe is that I wanted to know more about what happened to all of the various characters after the mystery was solved. Still, a solid 4.5 stars.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bowser is back! And he's taking his job as head of security at 19 Gentilly Lane seriously. So when their house is broken into, Bowser is seriously upset. He feels like he's let Birdie down. Why did someone break into their house? Nothing was missing. Another mystery for Birdie to solve and she's on the case with Bowser right at her side, just where he belongs.

I love Bowser. He's loyal and brave. So what if he has a mild case of attention deficit disorder.

I also love reading a solid mystery for middle grade readers. Forget Nancy Drew, give me a Bowser and Birdie mystery any day.

[Mrs. Ehlers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bowser has a nose to smell out things that don't seem right. That's why he suspicious when he sees a strange car drive by the house. Bowser's owner, Birdie is a good detective but she doesn't always understand what he is trying to tell her. After their house is broken into, Birdie and Browser are set into action to try to solve the mystery. This is the second book in the Bowser and Birdie Series. A good book for those who like a good mystery and also enjoy reading a story with a strong dog character.

[Aiden T. Rushing · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the second Bowser and Birdie Mystery, young Birdie and her sidekick Bowser are trying to get to the bottom of a few things. First, why did someone break into their little (and empty of any valuables) home? What does the woman with green hair really want? And what does any of this have to do with her father, a police officer killed in the line of duty?

Follow Bowser and Birdie through the swampland while they search for answers to those, and so many more, questions.

[Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exactly like the previous one: a complex suspenseful mystery with Bowser and Birdie saving the day and the evildoer vanquished via the local wildlife. It's a good story but honestly, it's so much like the previous one I feel like it was constructed, rather than written. More in the series may show up but I doubt I am going to read them.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel also took a turn that I see quite a bit in the cozy mysteries written for adults but didn't expect here. A secondary character, one who is important to the novel but isn't a recurring character is murdered at about the start of the third act.


http://pussreboots.com/blog/2022/comm...

[Norman Styers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Chet and Bernie series, and so was delighted to discover this, sort of a YA equivalent, by the same author. The series is set in the Louisiana bayous that Chet and Bernie visited in one of their adventures. It seems a good guess that the author liked the setting for dog adventures.

[Yvonne Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is so much fun!! Told by Bowsers point of view.
Birdie is such a smart little girl. She along with her faithful dog
Bowser have a way of looking and finding clues to always find the bad
guys!!

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I still find the dog's perspective to be a little too ADD for my taste and it still bothers me he can describe colors so well. However, it's cute and it made me giggle out loud a couple of times.

[Lis Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bowser and his girl, Birdie Gaux, normally live a happy and carefree life. Now, though, there's been a breakin at 19 Gentilly Lane; the smell of limeade aftershave and cat is all over the side of the house belonging to Bowser, Birdie, and Mama; Mama has lost her oil rig engineering job; a strange young woman with green hair is asking odd questions about the death of Birdie's father, years ago, in New Orleans; and a man who smells of limeade aftershave and cat is showing a lot of interest in Mama.

Birdie's dad's death has been a cold case for a long time, but maybe now it isn't, anymore. Why is it suddenly heating up again? And why are Bowser and Birdie the only ones noticing?

Birdie's not too impressed with Vin Pardo, the new guy suddenly interested in Mama, nor is Gran. Bowser's the only one, though, who knows he's the intruder who broke into the house, and tore Mama's room apart looking for something he didn't find.

Meanwhile, there's the other breakin across town, at the Richelieu home. When Bowser and Birdie go there to see if it was the same as the breakin at their house, they meet the Richelieus, including their teenage son, Preston, who, like his parents, is an arrogant jerk. They also discover that his mother, Minerva Richelieu, is for some reason carrying a pearl necklace in her purse. This becomes very interesting when they learn from the sheriff's son, Rory, that Mrs. Richelieu has reported the pearls stolen in that breakin.

There's also, of course, the green-haired girl and her questions, and the owner of the campsite she's staying at. He's running for sheriff against the incumbent, and his claim to dislike children and dogs doesn't give Bowser or Birdie a good impression of him initially. But when the green-haired girl disappears, things happen that cause Birdie to suspect he might be smarter than the current sheriff.

There's a lot of stuff going on, and much confusion because our chief investigators are a dog--a smart dog, but a real dog, with a dog's nose and ears, but also a reasonable approximation of a real dog's reasoning ability--and an eleven-year-old girl, very smart, but lacking in adult experience. They muddle through, though, and never give up, and find their way through to the end.

It's a lot of fun and very satisfying. One of the things I love about Spencer Quinn's books are his dogs, who are very real and convincing dogs. That's something most dog-narrated books don't achieve, and it makes Quinn's books something special.

Recommended.

I bought this audiobook.

[Anke · Rating 1 out of 5]

My 8 year old son picked this book because of the cute dog on the cover and since Amazon marks it for Age range 8-12 years I I thought it would be a fun dog and kid story. While reading it to him, I couldn't believe what kinds of language and situations they thought were appropriate for young readers.

In the book, a woman gets killed and 11 year old Birdie finds the corpse in the water. They talk about murders and describe how one man was shot in the back of the head and the other died through blunt force trauma. And in the final chapter, Birdie gets choked until her eyes turn glassy while Bowser gets hit with a gun and his blood sprays around. I edited all of this while I was reading it into some much more circumspect language.

I also felt that the dog's references to his own forgetfulness, his being easily distracted and his not understanding some human interactions mostly went over my son's head.

We read the whole book since he really wanted to know how it ended but I did a lot of editing/leaving out things on the way.

[zapkode · Rating 5 out of 5]

{My thoughts} – Birdie and Bowser get to go on another wonderful detective mission. However, this particular mission hits a lot closer to home then the last one had. This one is about Birdie’s father and the last case he’d been working on. The case that had unfortunately resulted in his death.

It takes Birdie sometime to piece together the puzzle of what will soon lead to a ground breaking conclusion for the entire family.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I enjoy it even more because it is written in Bowser’s point of view. I think it’s neat how the author has Bowser’s thoughts going round and round and round, but eventually they do circle back and start to make sense of things.

I recommend this book for anyone that loves soft mysteries and dogs. It was a very enjoyable book to read and I am certain others will come to the same conclusion as I, when it comes to reading this book. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

[Mayda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This delightful mystery was written by Spencer Quinn, who pens the Chet and Bernie mystery series, and like that series, it is told from the point of view of the dog. Bowser is just as lovable as Chet though probably not quite as bright. But what Bowser lacks in smarts, he makes up for in fierce loyalty to Birdie, his 11-year-old owner. In this tale, a new acquaintance of Birdie’s seems to have some connection to Birdie’s father’s murder years before. Before it can all be sorted out, the new friend herself is murdered, and Birdie is caught up in trying to tie it all together. Bowser has his paws full trying to keep Birdie safe, and he gets some help from an unexpected source. This is an exciting and charming story, intended for children, but can be enjoyed by all ages. The audio version is well performed by James Frangione and is highly recommended.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounded up

This book was fun, although easy to predict what was going to happen and to figure out the mystery, although I was surprised by a few of the pieces that were uncovered. The book's target audience is middle grade readers, so I expected a quick, easy read and that's what I got.

I love this author's Chet & Bernie series, and was hoping to like this series just as much, but I don't... maybe because the style is so very similar to Chet & Bernie's adventures. Both series are told from the dog's point of view, and Bowser sounds/thinks very much like Chet. If it wasn't for different settings and different surrounding characters - and simpler mysteries - they could be the same stories.

There is only one book left in this series (maybe other readers feel the same way?), and I'll read it eventually, just not anytime soon.