Mitzi Tulane, Preschool Detective in What's That Smell?

by Lauren McLaughlin, Debbie Ohi (Illustrator)

Overview

Mitzi Tulane may be only three years old, but she sure knows how to follow a trail of evidence and solve tough mysteries. From the strange happenings in the kitchen to the sudden arrival of every family member she’s ever met, Mitzi pieces together the clues and (finally) realizes that she’s . . . in the middle of her own surprise birthday party!
 
Kids and parents will laugh along as Mitzi sorts through not-so-subtle hints and comes to her conclusions. Readers will love figuring out the surprise ahead of the private-eye protagonist! Debbie Ridpath Ohi’s bouncy illustrations bring an extra layer of fun to Lauren McLaughlin’s clever story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375971761
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	07/12/2016
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	2 - 5 Years

About the Author

LAUREN McLAUGHLIN grew up in the small town of Wenham, Massachusetts. After college and a brief flirtation with anthropology, she spent ten years as a screenwriter and movie producer before turning her attention to writing novels and picture books.
 
DEBBIE RIDPATH OHI is a writer and illustrator based in Toronto. She began her career as a computer programmer and analyst, but has since focused on writing and illustrating books for young people. She is the illustrator of Michael Ian Black’s picture books I’m Bored and Naked!

Editorial Reviews

".. a sweet story centering on a bright, black birthday girl, and on that front it takes the cake."

Kirkus Reviews

"Young detectives everywhere will love following along with Mitzi as she uncovers clue after clue that something is up at 123 Maple Street, until the very end, when she is surprised by the best birthday party in all her four years. This brightly illustrated story will be fun for young listeners as they try to guess what is happening. Will they figure it out before Mitzi does? The protagonist is brown-skinned, and her parents, doll, and little brother are white. The scenes of their relatives and friends are equally diverse and reinforce the subtle lesson that people and families come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. VERDICT Mitzi Tulane is a character whom children will enjoy meeting, and they will look forward to her future adventures." — School Library Journal

From the Publisher

Mitzi Tulane considers herself a skilled preschool detective. The dark-skinned three-year-old is trying to solve the mystery of an unusual smell in the house. As she considers the scent, she notes other clues that may be relevant. Mitzi first discovers the odor while she is reading a book to her baby doll, Gigi Gaboo. She sees her pale-skinned mother making a mess in the kitchen. She finds an ally, albeit a non-communicative one, in her similarly pale baby brother Kev. She finds her pale-skinned father, strangely clean-shaven for a weekend day. Then she finds a whole lot of people, family and friends—“everyone in the whole wide world,” Mitzi determines—in her living room. Readers will have fun piecing together the clues to reach a distinctly exciting conclusion in this case. Lauren McLaughlin’s story provides even young readers the opportunity to interact with the text. Debbie Ridpath Ohi’s childlike illustrations portray a multicultural community that comes together out of love of a curious little girl. This is the first “Mitzi Tulane, Preschool Detective” book. Readers will be looking forward to more sleuthing in the future. Reviewer: Heidi Hauser Green; Ages 2 to 6.

Children's Literature - Heidi Hauser Green

09/01/2016
PreS—Young detectives everywhere will love following along with Mitzi as she uncovers clue after clue that something is up at 123 Maple Street, until the very end, when she is surprised by the best birthday party in all her four years. This brightly illustrated story will be fun for young listeners as they try to guess what is happening. Will they figure it out before Mitzi does? The protagonist is brown-skinned, and her parents, doll, and little brother are white. The scenes of their relatives and friends are equally diverse and reinforce the subtle lesson that people and families come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. VERDICT Mitzi Tulane is a character whom children will enjoy meeting, and they will look forward to her future adventures.—Betsy Davison, Cortland Free Library, NY

School Library Journal

2016-04-13
Mitzi Tulane may be a preschool detective, but she is also a birthday girl.She doesn't know that yet, though. Her first clue is that she smells a new smell in the kitchen. Baby Kev doesn't give her any help in figuring things out, and neither does Daddy. She finds him shaving in the bathroom, which is odd since it's Sunday, and he usually stays "scratchy all weekend." Undaunted, Mitzi continues to investigate, and she gets yet more clues when grandparents, aunties, uncles, and cousins arrive. They add to the matter-of-fact multiracial cast of characters—the extended family includes aunties and cousins with a range of skin tones and hair textures, while Mitzi, with brown skin and curly dark hair, appears black, and her fair-skinned parents and baby brother are white. Confusingly, relatives' clothing doesn't seem to remain the same from one spread to the next, so it's hard to track their presence in different scenes as Mitzi solves the mystery that it is her birthday. (That eponymous smell from the kitchen? It's her birthday cake.) It's also a bit hard to believe that such a smart, inquisitive child would be unaware of her approaching fourth birthday when this is such a big deal to most kids. Despite misgivings, it's a sweet story centering on a bright, black birthday girl, and on that front it takes the cake. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews