Jigsaw: Mystery in the Mail

A mysterious package is delivered to the Kelly family. It is covered with exotic stamps and has clearly come from a long way away. When they open it they find a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle of a scene in Africa along with an unsigned note that simply says, “Good luck to you all.” Mom, Kitty, and Katie want to do it. Dad says he has time on his hands, so he sets his watch to late autumn and they begin. But as they unwrap the puzzle, they don’t notice that one piece falls onto the dog’s back. The piece falls onto the floor, where it is vacuumed up and put into the garbage and carried away. It isn’t until much later the family discovers there’s a missing piece. Can they ever finish the puzzle?

Bob Graham has created a funny family and given them a silly problem. It certainly will intrigue young listeners and give them plenty to wonder about as they are totally engaged. The illustrations are delightful and filled with lots of fun details to help keep youngsters’ eyes on the pages as they search the drawings. Kids will love this one and so will adults reading it.