ALA Booklist (Fri Oct 01 00:00:00 CDT 2004)

In this debut title in a proposed series, Adler adds a new character to his lineup of elementary-school detectives. Young sleuth Jeffrey Bones is at the mall with his grandfather when he encounters the driver of his school bus, who has misplaced his vehicle. Detective Bones immediately begins sorting out the clues and quickly solves the mystery. In the meantime, his grandfather has a surprise of his own; he has adopted a dog that Bones had fallen for earlier in the day. Adler writes an appealing, breezy, sometimes slapstick story in short, accessible sentences and with plenty of lively dialogue to help guide beginning readers. Newman's expressive acrylics reinforce the meaning in the words while extending the sense of silliness in scenes of Bones and a crowd of friendly characters, all clad in garish, cheerfully patterned outfits. A solid offering in the Viking Easy-To-Read series.

Horn Book

Jeffrey Bones finds clues and solves mysteries. In Yellow he helps a bus driver find his missing bus at a shopping mall, and in Dog he finds his Grandpa's lost dog. The brightly patterned illustrations help make these two beginning readers enjoyable. The solutions involve simple logic so readers can figure them out along with Jeffrey.

Kirkus Reviews

Adler, author of the Cam Jansen series, introduces a new easy-reader mystery series with this story about a junior detective named Jeffrey Bones. While shopping at the mall with his grandfather, Jeffrey helps his school-bus driver locate his missing bus. Jeffrey also finds a friendly dog in a pet store and his grandfather decides to buy the dog—named Curly. The volume's design includes a short line length and plenty of white space surrounding the mid-level, first-person text, which is divided into short chapters. Illustrations on almost every page follow freckle-faced Jeffrey and his cheerful grandpa, who wears a polka-dot shirt and checked pants. The story isn't particularly humorous, and the mini-mystery is slight, but Jeffrey, Grandpa, and Curly are now established as a team, ready to solve more mysteries. Bones and the Dog Gone Mystery (ISBN: 0-670-05948-X) is the second in the series . (Easy reader. 5-7)

School Library Journal

Gr 1-3-Jeffrey Bones is at the mall with his grandfather when his school bus driver asks for help. Mr. Green has lost his bus and will be in big trouble unless it can be found. By gathering clues and asking the right questions, the young sleuth is able to find the missing vehicle. Beginning readers will enjoy the mystery and the silly puns that Grandpa makes about his grandson's name. While there are not enough clues for children to solve the mystery on their own, they will be satisfied by the boy's quick answer to the puzzle (especially since it makes him look clever and the adult look a little foolish). The bright cartoons show a freckle-faced, round-cheeked youngster with a crop of brown hair. This first book in a new series for beginning readers is sure to be as popular as Cam Jansen is with the chapter-book crowd.-Lynda S. Poling, Long Beach Public Library, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.