Detectives in Togas: Amazon.ca: Henry Winterfeld: Books

Product Description

In these two delightful history-mysteries, seven boys in Ancient Rome solve strange crimes . . . thanks to some help from their cranky teacher, a little bit of logic, and a lot of amusing misadventure. Yes, Rufus wrote CAIUS IS A DUMBBELL on his tablet at school, but no, he did not break into the schoolroom, did not tie up his teacher, and certainly did not paint his slur about Caius on the Temple of Minerva (even if it is in Rufus's own handwriting). Rufus is doomed unless his six classmates can find out who is really responsible. Every hour seems to bring a new, confusing clue . . . until the boys finally stumble upon someone who is not what he appears to be.

About the Author

HENRY WINTERFELD (1901-1990) was born in Germany. He began writing for children in 1933, when he wrote Trouble at Timpetill to entertain his son, who was sick with scarlet fever. He went on to write a number of children's books, which have been published around the world.

Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
Mucius raised his head in surprise. Read the first page

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Concordance

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

19 Reviews

5 star:		(14)
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Average Customer Review

4.6 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Charming historical mystery, Oct 24 2002

By

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME) (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Detectives in Togas (Paperback)

Roman history, boring? You wouldn't think so, reading "Detectives in Togas." Seven high-spirited Roman boys and their crabby teacher make up the cast of this outstanding head-scratcher, set in the heydey of Rome's domination.

Rufus disrupted Xantippus's class by writing "Caius is a dumbbell" on a tablet, provoking Caius to start yelling. In the blink of an eye, Rufus has been thrown out of the schoolmates, alarming his classmates. What's even more alarming is that the same message is scrawled on a sacred temple's wall the next day -- in Rufus's handwriting. This act of sacrilege will destroy Rufus's life, and for some reason he won't deny it.

The day of the defacing, Xantippus's house is robbed and the wax tablet is taken, but the robber leaves behind a beautiful golden brooch. The boys go to the soothsayer Lukos, but that goes horribly wrong when the soothsayer chases them out, and they leave behind Mucius, who then proceeds to fall into the Baths of Diana -- discovering that Rufus spent the night there before. The boys soon become enmeshed in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse centering on politics, money and revenge.

Henry Winterfield clearly had solid memories of being a teenage boys. His gaggle of young boys are entirely realistic -- they bicker, they make idiots of themselves, they make all the wrong decisions, they all have distinct personalities. With a cast including seven young boys from similar backgrounds, you would think that they would all be the same, but Winterfield manages to make each one unique. Xantippus is the crabby grandfather with a marshmallowy interior. He clearly cares about all the boys, but is impatient about their blunders.

Kids may leave this charming mystery with a wish to learn a little more about Rome (and to read the sequel, of course). And don't be surprised if you hear someone shouting, "Mike asinus est!"

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4.0 out of 5 stars Good and Bad, May 15 2004

By

Charles Fong (Taiwan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Detectives in Togas (Paperback)

This book is full of adventure and mystery. However this book have a lot of grmmer mistakes. I recomend this book to young readers that likes mysteries.

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5.0 out of 5 stars A great mystery, Feb 27 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Detectives in Togas (Paperback)

This book is hilarious and one of the greatest mysteries ever written. When I read a mysery I usually at least have a guess of how it ends, but i couldn't even immagine the ending of this book.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just a kid book
This book is suitable for any ages. It's so funny and deftly written I was laughing on the bus and everyone though I was nuts. Read it and see why... Read more

Published on Aug 9 2001 by teencynic

5.0 out of 5 stars Detectives in Togas Review
When a temple is defaced the students of the Xanthos school try to find out who did it. All signs are pointing to their freind, Rufus, but they don't think he did it. Read more

Published on Jan 17 2001