Shaky, Breaky School Sleuth Read online

  Shaky, Breaky School Sleuth

  By J.L. Anderson

  Illustrated by David Ouro

  rourkeeducationalmedia.com

  © 2016 Rourke Educational Media

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher.

  www.rourkeeducationalmedia.com

  Edited by: Keli Sipperley

  Cover and Interior layout by: Jen Thomas

  Cover and Interior Illustrations by: David Ouro

  Library of Congress PCN Data

  Shaky, Breaky School Sleuth / J.L. Anderson

  (Rourke’s Mystery Chapter Books)

  ISBN (hard cover)(alk. paper) 978-1-63430-387-3

  ISBN (soft cover) 978-1-63430-487-0

  ISBN (e-Book) 978-1-63430-582-2

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2015933743

  Printed in the United States of America,

  North Mankato, Minnesota

  Dear Parents and Teachers:

  With twists and turns and red herrings, readers will enjoy the challenge of Rourke’s Mystery Chapter Books. This series set at Watson Elementary School builds a cast of characters that readers quickly feel connected to. Embedded in each mystery are experiences that readers encounter at home or school. Topics of friendship, family, and growing up are featured within each book.

  Mysteries open many doors for young readers and turn them into lifelong readers because they can’t wait to find out what happens next. Readers build comprehension strategies by searching out clues through close reading in order to solve the mystery.

  This genre spreads across many areas of study including history, science, and math. Exploring these topics through mysteries is a great way to engage readers in another area of interest. Reading mysteries relies on looking for patterns and decoding clues that help in learning math skills.

  Whether readers are reading the books independently or you are reading with them, engaging with them after they have read the book is still important. We’ve included several activities at the end of each book to make this both fun and educational.

  Do you think you and your reader have what it takes to be a detective? Can you solve the mystery? Will you accept the challenge?

  Rourke Educational Media

  Table of Contents

  Candy Dreams

  Keely’s Audition Nightmare

  Practice Makes Problems

  Javier is Missing

  Keely Looks for Clues

  Foul Play?

  Finding the Crystal Cave

  Standing Ovations

  Candy Dreams

  Keely paused in front of the Candy Dreams school play sign-up sheet hanging outside of the music room. She held a pencil in her hand but she wasn’t sure about auditioning. Keeping a secret was about the only thing she knew about acting.

  “Did you forget your name or something?” Klaude asked, waiting for his turn to sign up. Of course a class clown like Klaude would want to be in the play. He loved being on stage. Keely rolled her eyes at him.

  Keely’s new friend, Queeneka, grabbed the pencil from Keely’s hand. She signed up and added Keely’s name under her own. “We’re going to have a blast in the play together! I just know I’m going to get the part of Candy Princess. You’ll get a good part too. I think.” She muttered the last part under her breath.

  Klaude signed up next and wrote his name above Queeneka’s. “The lead part of the play will be Candy Prince, not Candy Princess.”

  “We’ll have to see about that,” Queeneka said. She turned around so fast her long braids almost whipped a boy named Javier in the face. He was next in line at the sign-up sheet.

  When Queeneka didn’t say a thing to Javier before walking off, Keely apologized for her. “Sorry, Queeneka’s crazy about the play right now. I don’t think she noticed you standing there.”

  “No big deal.” Javier shrugged. He had pink paint smeared on the side of his nose. Javier was one of the best artists at Watson Elementary School. He’d been painting the set for Candy Dreams. His painting of cotton candy looked good enough for Keely to eat.

  Keely watched as Javier held a pencil in his hand and paused for a moment, just as she’d done a few minutes before. Good thing Queeneka and Klaude already wrote their names on the list or they would’ve rushed him, too.

  “You want to be in the play?” Keely asked. Not the best question, but she was surprised since Javier was shy and seemed more interested in painting the set than being in the play. That’s how she felt, only she wasn’t good at art. Keely didn’t know what she was good at.

  “Yeah, I do want to be in the play even if it will be hard for me,” Javier said, still staring at the sign-up sheet as if it were a huge mountain he was about to climb. Then he wrote his name under Keely’s.

  That solved it. If Javier had it in him to try out for the school play, Keely could give it a try, too.

  For the rest of the day, the third graders at Watson buzzed about Candy Dreams. “It would be cool if I got a part in the play to make my dad proud. He’s coming home soon from the Army and maybe he can be there,” a boy named Romy said.

  “My costume for the lead part is going to be amazing,” Queeneka said.

  “Who cares about the costume? I’ll put on the best show!” Klaude danced around the classroom and pretended to play a flute or something until Mr. Hambrick told him to knock it off.

  Keely wasn’t so excited. Whenever she got on the stage in music class, her knees buckled and words disappeared from her brain. She didn’t want to get embarrassed in front of everyone at the audition. Javier must’ve been nervous too because his hands shook as he drew pictures of cats in outer space all over his notebook. Keely liked the one of a cat in a space suit orbiting Jupiter.

  “Earth to Javier!” Mr. Hambrick said. The teacher spun around one of the planets hanging from the class ceiling. Javier looked up.

  “I’m paying attention,” Javier said and repeated the last couple of things Mr. Hambrick said in his lesson. Keely couldn’t do that!

  As soon as Mr. Hambrick went back to talking about the planets, Keely whispered to Javier, “Are you nervous?”

  Just like she’d suspected, Javier nodded. “Only a little,” he said. “I’ll get a part no matter what.”

  Keely sighed. This was true. Whoever signed up for a part in the play would get to participate—even if the person’s knees buckled and she couldn’t remember what to say. The point of the audition was for Mrs. Tune to assign the character to the students. Keely could do this. Maybe.

  The rest of the day seemed to drag on and then it was here. The audition!

  Keely’s Audition Nightmare

  Mrs. Tune welcomed the group. “Thank you for trying out for Candy Dreams! Every one of you auditioning today will be given a role. No matter if it is a small part or the lead role, your performance together as a group will make this play a sweet success. We need help with the set crew as well, for those of you interested. Javier has done an amazing job painting scenes for the play.”

  The music room was full of kids and they all clapped for Javier. He sat close to Keely and she noticed his hands were shaking again as he waved to the group.

  “I didn’t know he was going to try out for the play,” Queeneka whispered to Keely. “He’s so quiet I wonder if anyone will hear him on stage.”

  Keely wasn’t sure what to say since she worried about the same thing, only about herself. Would she be able to speak?

  In the play, the Candy Prince or Princess goes
missing in a crystal sugar cave, and pieces of candy must work together to find him or her trapped in a cotton candy blizzard. Mrs. Tune explained that everyone auditioning had to sing two short songs they’d learned in music class. She gave them the option of either singing in a small group or solo, if they felt comfortable. She passed out some Candy Dreams scripts, which each student would have to read from.

  Just as Keely looked at the glowing exit sign above the music room door and thought of making a run for it, Mrs. Tune called her name to audition first. What horrible luck, she thought.

  “Go break a leg, Keely,” Queeneka said. Keely nearly broke her leg as she tripped over Javier’s notebook. “Sorry!” she said before she made her way up to the stage. Keely could barely breathe. Romy had asthma and Keely wondered if this is what he felt like when he had an attack.

  “Would you like to sing a solo or sing in a small group?” Mrs. Tune asked her.

  The microphone looked like a weapon on the stage as Keely tried to speak into it. “Small group,” Keely said, stretching her legs because her knees were starting to buckle.

  “What was that, dear? You’ll have to speak up,” Mrs. Tune said.

  “Small group,” Keely repeated, but she had a feeling that her voice didn’t come out any louder.

  When Keely read from the first line of the script, her throat felt as though she’d swallowed a dozen cotton balls. Her eyes felt moist as she looked out at the audience. Some of the kids were laughing. Klaude probably was making fun of her.

  Queeneka gave her a thumbs-up for encouragement and Javier smiled at her. She thought again how brave shy Javier was to audition. Keely was the type of girl who would rather blend into the background, but she secretly wanted to be bold like Queeneka. And she wanted to be brave like Javier. Keely took a deep breath and tried to be like both of them as she did what was right for her.

  She set the script down and stepped away from the microphone. She looked at Mrs. Tune and said, “Thanks, but I’d rather be part of the set crew.”

  The microphone must’ve picked up her voice because the audience clapped. Maybe it was a pity clap or maybe the group was just happy her audition was over, Keely thought. She avoided making eye contact with anyone as she returned to her seat.

  “Nice try,” Queeneka said. “Now that I think about it, you’re perfect for the set crew. At least now we don’t have to fight about the lead role.”

  Keely laughed. That’s all Queeneka could think about. And really, the girl was born to act. Keely stared at her friend in wonder when it was her turn to read from the lines and sing. She chose a solo and belted out a song about toffee troubles. Klaude didn’t make a single joke when it was his turn. He danced polka moves while he sang about toffee. If Keely wasn’t so impressed, she would’ve laughed.

  Mrs. Tune would have a hard time choosing between the two of them, and four kids still hadn’t auditioned, including Javier.

  Keely watched as Javier’s hands shook — especially the moment Mrs. Tune called his name. Javier took one look at the script, then set it aside before performing the lines. It was like he was painting, only it was in a different form.

  Queeneka’s jaw dropped open. Then she complained that it wasn’t fair that he got to paint the set and be in the play. “Hold on a second—” Queeneka started to say before Javier chose the solo song option.

  Keely could see that Queeneka was trying to interrupt his performance. As much as she liked Queeneka, Keely wanted Javier to have a chance just like everyone else. “Shh,” Keely said to Queeneka. “You had your turn already.”

  Javier––shy artist Javier!––sang the toffee song so well that it gave Keely the chills. Everyone clapped when he finished. Queeneka gave Keely a dirty look.

  “Thank you all so much for trying out!” Mrs. Tune said at the end of the audition. “I’ll post the cast list on Friday. Look for your name and the character you will play. I know some of you will be happy and some of you will be disappointed, but remember that we’re all in this together. Please know that there won’t be any changes to the list once it is made.”

  “If you get the part of the candy royalty, you’ll regret it,” Queeneka said to Javier.

  Keely had already apologized for Queeneka once and she wasn’t going to apologize again. She had a bad feeling about the play.

  Practice Makes Problems

  On Friday, Mrs. Tune posted the cast list outside of her door and a crowd gathered. Queeneka didn’t wait for Keely as she elbowed her way to the front of the line.

  Keely chose not to act in the play, but she was still curious to find out who got cast in what role. Word traveled down the line fast—Javier got the part of Candy Prince! Even though his audition had been great, the crowd gasped. Keely thought Queeneka might burst into tears, but she held her head up high.

  Keely searched around for Javier to see his reaction and found him sitting on the music room floor cleaning up some paint. That was nice of him, Keely thought. She wondered if he knew the good news or not yet. Her attention turned back to the line when Klaude got in Queeneka’s face. “Told you that there was going to be a Candy Prince instead of a Candy Princess! I just wish I got the lead instead of Javier.”

  “Same here! Did you see the way Javier’s hands shook at the audition? I bet he’ll be too scared to act the night of the play,” Queeneka said. “Whatever. Gum Drop is actually a better part than the prince or princess. I’ll get more time on stage than the Candy Prince because he gets stuck in the cave.”

  “Well,” Klaude said, “Licorice gets to dance plus sings a better solo than Gum Drop.”

  Romy cheered when he saw his part of Bubble Gum. “I don’t care about any of that. I just hope my dad gets to see me!”

  Some of the other kids whooped when they saw their parts. Others groaned. Keely watched as Queeneka walked into the music room and said something to Javier. He looked shocked. The next week of practice was going to be interesting, Keely thought.

  ******

  The cast and the set crew rehearsed Candy Dreams after school in the cafeteria. Keely discovered she really loved working on the set of a play. She was in charge of the music and she learned how to flip on some of the stage lights. Queeneka and Keely talked some, but not as much as before. Keely wondered if it still had to do with Javier or because they were both so busy with their schoolwork and their roles in the play.

  Javier painted an amazing set with yummy looking candy pictures. In the middle of the play, Keely would have to go on stage and change out the pictures from summer – rainbow candy fruit – to winter – cotton candy storm pictures. Keely’s favorite part of the set was a painting of the crystal cave the Candy Prince pretended to be trapped inside.

  Mrs. Tune kept fussing at them all and pulling her hair. Just setting foot on the stage made it hard for Keely to breathe and she could barely move the set pieces. Javier did okay at practice, but not anywhere near as well as he had done in the audition. In fact, his hands shook even more.

  Romy spoke out of turn and then had an asthma attack. Klaude kept forgetting his lines, and Queeneka added lines to her character and made up a dance.

  “I really want to impress Mrs. Holmes and your parents. Please don’t let me down,” Mrs. Tune said. Mrs. Holmes was the school principal.

  “I’m not sure if I can pull my part off,” Javier said after Mrs. Tune made him sing the same crystal sugar cave song three times. Mrs. Tune’s hair stood up in every direction by the time he got it right.

  Even if Mrs. Tune lost it some, the kids decided to get her a box of candy and a vase with some roses as a thank you gift for her hard work. Javier’s parents were going to buy everything, and then they’d give her the gift at the end of the play the following night.

  For now, Javier sat off in the corner of the cafeteria during a short break. “You okay?’ Keely asked him, even though she knew he wasn’t okay.

  “Acting in the play was a bad idea,” he said.

  “Are you kidding? Yo
u’re so talented it isn’t even fair,” Keely said.

  Mrs. Tune clapped her hands for them to get back to work. Javier’s performance got worse as the practice session continued. Other kids struggled too and Keely had to give a couple more pep talks. That seemed to be another job of set crew. Klaude sat on the ground, pouting while he tinkered with a wooden instrument.

  “I don’t know if I’ll remember my lines tomorrow,” Klaude confessed to Keely.

  Keely noticed that he’d been learning Licorice’s lines as well as the Candy Prince’s lines. “If you just focus on your part and not on Javier’s then it will be easier.”

  “Yeah,” Klaude said, “I plan on playing his part too since I think he’s going to change his mind.”

  Keely hoped that didn’t happen.

  “I should’ve been the Candy Princess,” Queeneka told Keely as they waited for their parents to pick them up.

  “Yeah, but no one would play the part of Gum Drop as well as you,” Keely said.

  Queeneka smiled at that. “Sorry if I was rude before. I just want this so badly, you know?”

  Keely didn’t know exactly, but she gave Queeneka a hug. She wanted to be friends again.

  That night Keely had a hard time sleeping because she was thinking about the play and all the things that could go wrong. She had no idea what was in store.

  Javier is Missing

  Keely wore a cotton-candy pink shirt and a matching tutu the night of the play. She felt fancy and would blend in on the stage when she changed the set. Keely’s parents changed out of their usual Scoop Troop business shirts and wore nice dress pants and button-down shirts. “We’re so proud of you, Keely,” they said.

  When Keely went behind the curtain on the cafeteria stage before the play started, she was surprised to see Mrs. Tune’s hair wilder than ever. “I don’t know what we’re going to do,” Mrs. Tune said, pacing back and forth.