A summer in the South Book

There is a series of strange happenings in a small hotel on a lovely beach, and one of the hotel guests is responsible. Vacationing detective Eleanor Owl is determined to find out who it is. Could it be . . . the hotelkeeper (a turkey who loves his hotel); Foster Pig (a cantankerous porcine fellow); Don Coyote (a dapper gentleman of delicate health); The Squirrel Twins (who appreciate a racket and a good "furry dipping"); Miss Marietta Chicken (a fowl lady, though more serene than most chickens); or the mysterious Cootie family from Puddle Rapids? Beginning readers are sure to have great fun and more than a few laughs sleuthing out the mysterious culprit. James Marshall (1942–1992) created dozens of exuberant and captivating books for children, including The Stupids, Miss Nelson Is Missing!, and the ever-popular George and Martha books. Before creating his canon of classic, hilarious children’s books, James Marshall played the viola, studied French, and received a master’s degree from Trinity College. He also doodled. It was the doodles, and the unforgettable characters that emerged from them, that led him to his life’s work as one of the finest creators of children’s books of the twentieth century. In 2007, James Marshall was posthumously awarded the Laura Ingalls Wilder medal for his lasting contribution to literature for children.