7 Ate 9: The Untold Story
The Private I series, Book 1
Tara Lazar, illustrations by Ross McDonald
Little, Brown Books
Fiction, CH Humor/Mystery/Picture Book
Themes: Cross-Genre, Urban Tales
****
Description
When rumors spread about 7, that he ate 9, a distraught number 6 turns to the letter detective Private I for help; after all, if 7's gone bad, surely 6 is next in line for the knife (and fork). Both 7 and 9 are conspicuously absent from the city, but does the story add up, or is this case a bad equation?
Review
Most everyone knows the grade school joke ("Why was 6 afraid of 7?" "Because 7 8 9!" - read it out loud if you don't get it), but this "untold story" explores the case in detail, with several number-related puns and jokes along the way. I interviews 8 at the crossing of Second and Fourth streets, and picks up tips at the cafe while eating a slice of pi, before finally cracking the case. It's a clever (for the target audience) nod to private eye tropes.