{"product_id":"the-boy-detective-fails-9781933354101","title":"The Boy Detective Fails","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"A delicate blend of whimsy and edginess. Meno packs his novel with delightful subtext.\" --\u003cem\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Comedic, imaginative, empathic, atmospheric, archetypal, and surpassingly sweet, Meno's finely calibrated fantasy investigates the precincts of grief, our longing to combat chaos with reason, and the menace and magic concealed within everyday life.\" --\u003cem\u003eBooklist\u003c\/em\u003e, Starred Review\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the twilight of a mysterious childhood full of wonder, Billy Argo, boy detective, is brokenhearted to find that his younger sister and crime-solving partner, Caroline, has committed suicide. Ten years later, Billy, age thirty, returns from an extended stay at St. Vitus' Hospital for the Mentally Ill to discover the world full of unimaginable strangeness: office buildings vanish without reason, small animals turn up without their heads, and cruel villains ride city buses to complete their evil schemes.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLost within this unwelcoming place, Billy finds the companionship of two lonely, extraordinary children, Effie and Gus Mumford--one a science fair genius, the other a charming, silent bully. With a nearly forgotten bravery, Billy treads from the unendurable boredom of a telemarketing job, stumbles into the awkward beauty of a desperate pickpocket named Penny Maple, and confronts the nearly impossible solution to the mystery of his sister's death. Along a path laden with hidden clues and codes that dare the reader to help Billy decipher the mysteries he encounters, the boy detective may learn the greatest secret of all: the necessity of the unknown.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Akashic Books, Ltd.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/01\/2006\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781933354101\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.70lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.50h x 5.50w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 06\/15\/2006 pg. 596\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/17\/2006 pg. 136\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/01\/2006 pg. 32\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2006 pg. 138\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eEntertainment Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2006 pg. 82\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/01\/2006 pg. 246\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Best Books\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/15\/2006 pg. 12\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist Editors Choice\/Adult\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2007 pg. 10\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Joe Meno","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43799780229301,"sku":"9781933354101","price":14.41,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_f21774eb-0e00-478d-a6d2-7711d3c16429.jpg?v=1711478327","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-boy-detective-fails-9781933354101","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}