Book Alert!: A Tumbleweed Mystery

by Ted Clifton, Marilyn Clifton

Johnny Bensinger, fifth grader at East Side Elementary, has "borrowed" a few books from the school library. He had his reasons. Now the principal is requesting, over the intercom, information about the missing books. His teacher, Mrs. Bass, is giving him the eye. That's when the adventure begins. Soon it will involve a long dead Confederate General, gold coins, a cemetery full of clues, an angry relative of the General from Spain, local thugs, a priest, a dog named Ratty and a very mysterious French lady who used to be a police detective. There are also the Marshal boys, who seem to be in the middle of everything. It's the 1950s in middle America. Johnny has enlisted the help of his friends, Devin and Vicki, to help search for clues about a lost fortune that might be hidden somewhere in their small town. The books he took from the library are the key to finding the treasure. The mystery woman called Tumbleweed is either helping or pretending to help, Johnny isn't sure. There is also a slight chance the dog can talk!

172 pages, Hardcover

Published May 10, 2022

About the author

Award-winning author Ted Clifton has written mystery novels which feature the settings of New Mexico and Oklahoma, places where Ted spent considerable time.

One of his books, The Bootlegger’s Legacy, won the IBPA Benjamin Franklin award and the CIPA EVVY award.

He currently has three mystery series: Pacheco and Chino, the Muckraker Mystery series and the Vincent Malone series. The first book, Santa Fe Mojo, from the Malone series was just published.

Today, Ted resides in Denver with his wife and grandson, after many years living in the New Mexico desert.