Case of the Fugitive Firebug

by Scott Corbett

Amateur detective Roger Tearle must discover who set the fire that destroyed a valuable car and prove that the boy hiding in his tree house isn't the suspected firebug.

Genres: Mystery, Childrens

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

About the author

Scott Corbett (July 27, 1913 – March 6, 2006) was an American novelist and educator. He wrote five adult novels, the first published in 1950, and then began writing books for children. He retired from teaching in 1965 to write full-time. His best known book is The Lemonade Trick, a children's novel.

Reviews

[Danielle Routh · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's Vintage Fiction Week once again! (Somewhat truncated by my departure to San Diego, so I'll probably only read a few books this time.) The first book of the week is a 1969 mystery starring Roger "Inspector" Tearle, a twelve-year-old who already has some cases under his belt before taking on the mystery of who burned down a garage with a $20,000 car inside. (Hey, it was the '60s.)

I think my mom picked this up for me at a book sale along with its sibling, The Mystery of the Silver Skull, which I'll read later this week. It's fast-paced, clever, and despite the year of publication, objectionable content is pretty much nil. An employee from South America is Inspector's first suspect, but it's due to his gruff and mysterious manner rather than his ethnicity. For a middle grade mystery, the interpersonal relationships are actually quite complex, and Inspector and his father share a sweet moment at the end of the book. Definitely give this a read if you stumble upon it.

[Randy Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Case of the Fugitive Firebug is the second of the five-book “Inspector Tearle” series—about Roger Tearle, a precocious, twelve-year-old sleuth who solves local, small-town mysteries with his twin sister and best friend. This one involves arson on a neighbor's estate—and it is a pretty good mystery. The best thing about the book, though, is that Roger's office is a treehouse in his backyard. As someone who had a treehouse myself (with friends), I can say building a treehouse was one of the highlights of my childhood. The treehouse is well-imagined here, and is kind of—along with Roger's overly anxious inner monologue—the center of the story. The fine illustrations by Paul Frame add quite a bit to it, as well—it's hard to say just how much—but they work together with the story of make it come alive. I really feel like I've spent as much time in that treehouse as I have in Roger's head.

[Dianna]

I started this as a read-aloud with my 6yo. He liked it at first, but it didn't turn out to be the ideal read-aloud: the sentences were a bit tortuous and it took a lot of words to explain what was going on.

I was pleasantly surprised by the reading level of this book. While it didn't make the ideal read-aloud for a 6yo, I would highly recommend this to a slightly older child. Many children's books these days seem to be written very simply, and I enjoyed the vocabulary and complexity of the writing style. I feel that it would appeal to kids who like mysteries—perhaps someone who's ready to move on from Encyclopedia Brown.

My copy of this book belonged to my grandmother, who used it in her school classroom in the 1970s.

[Rodney Haydon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many, many times as a kid. One of my favorite books from my favorite author as a child, Scott Corbett.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars -- The best part of this story was the last line. Seriously. In the last line, Inspector Roger Tearle, the 12-year-old main character, becomes a humble version of himself when he admits he is lucky to have his father rather than Hazy Milford's father. I think Scott Corbett was trying to create a young Sherlock Holmes, complete with the original's arrogance & ability to solve a mystery out of thin air, but for me, this doesn't work. I don't like Roger, and the solution to the mystery was, well, mystifying. The story makes no effort to tell the background information that allows Roger to figure out who set the fire that burns a garage containing a valuable antique Stutz Bearcat. Instead, the reader just hears the conclusion. I was not impressed. I can snatch any old answer out of thin air, BUT how did I get there? Explain! With no checkouts, some condition issues, & mine being the only library - district or public - to have this title, #31 in the 2026 Search & Purge is an easy weed. Farewell.

[Chris C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when I was 10 when I went crazy reading so many books. I have fond memories of this time of my life and have to thank my teacher for being quite inspirational. Is there ever a better time in your life to read fiction than that period of 9-14 yo.

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 3 out of 5]

B. fiction, children's fiction, upper elementary, mystery, vandalism, series, #2, from stash, keep

[Daniel Byrne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this through the school book club at nine years old when it first came out. Although some aspects of it might now seem dated, the story is timeless and it's still a great mystery that kids will appreciate now or 50 years from now.