Gr 4-7 Homer Pudding is a luckless 12-year-old who dreams of hunting treasure like the uncle he idolizes. When his uncle is eaten by a killer tortoise, Homer gets swept into the middle of a treacherous race to locate a pirate's treasure. A whimsical narration and sometimes comical dialogue add a light touchbut perhaps not quite light enough, as the boy's initial cheerlessness makes him hard to warm up to. The pace picks up when he arrives in The City, however, and gets himself out of danger more than once by using his wits. He is aided by Dog, a peculiar basset who turns out to have surprising sleuthing skills of his own, though readers will figure this out long before Homer does. The main villain is appropriately over-the-top: she's a ruthless museum director who seeks the treasure for personal gain, rather than sharing with the world. Occasionally silly plot contrivances make Homer's journey less than gripping, but they match the consistent mix of silliness and action. The boy's growth from hapless loser to skilled treasure hunter is fairly convincing; Homer uses his uncle's advice and the story of the Odyssey for inspiration and steadily gains confidence. The supporting cast is quirky and mildly amusing, if not especially memorable. The perky homeless girl who aids, and then betrays, Homer is more intriguing, though; the conclusion sets her up as a potential rival or possible friend in future installments. Steven Engelfried, Multnomah County Library, OR

Selfors offers up an adventure tale that features a humorous, high-stakes mystery and a lovable hero. Twelve-year-old Homer Pudding lives on a goat farm but dreams of growing up to be a great treasure hunter like his uncle, Drake Pudding. Drake spent most of his career searching for the greatest mass of loot collected by another great treasure hunter, the late Rumpold Smeller. When Drake dies under mysterious circumstances, he bequeaths a sad-eyed basset hound named Dog to Homer. Attached to Dog's collar is a coin etched with the letters L.O.S.T. As Homer races to decipher the meaning of L.O.S.T., find Smeller's treasure and locate the whereabouts of Drake's vast library, he discovers a valuable secret about Dog. Along the way, Homer encounters the devious Madame la Directeur, the pink-haired homeless girl Lorelei, Ajitabh, the inventor of the cloudcopter, and other equally memorable characters who help or hinder his quest. Peppered with funny dialogue, this joyous romp is a page-turning adventure that will appeal to enthusiastic and reluctant readers alike. (Adventure. 8-12)

Join a delightful band of misfits on a rollicking adventure that centers on a dog that canÆt smell and treasure hunting. Homer Pudding, son of a goat farmer, dreams of being a treasure hunter like his Uncle Drake. When his uncle dies in a tortoise accident, he is left a dog that canÆt smell, as well as unforeseen danger. Several people are looking for Rumpold SmellerÆs treasure map, which his uncle found and many think Homer now has. Homer is followed and eventually kidnapped by a man flying a cloud chopper. He is invited to the Natural History Museum but told not to bring his parents; instead his sister Gwendolyn goes. Gwendolyn wants to be the Royal Taxidermist for the museum and sees this as her opportunity to impress the director with all her stuffed dead animals, but evil lurks there as well. Along the way Homer meets a female giant and a homeless girl who sells soup. All of these people help Homer figure out what his uncleÆs "most treasured possessionö was and how it fits into his dream of treasure hunting. Full of fantasy, fun, and humorous dialogue, this will attract dog lovers, mystery enthusiasts, adventure addicts, and reluctant readers. A thoroughly enjoyable read.ùSusan Allen.

Starting with an author's note featuring a "no dead dogs" guarantee, this tale opens with 12-year-old Homer Winslow Pudding receiving a basset hound with a special coin hiding in his collar. Bequeathed by the boy's uncle Drake, a famous treasure hunter who was killed by a man-eating tortoise, Dog accompanies Homer as he leaves his family's goat farm in Milkydale and begins an odyssey into the city to find the real cause of his uncle's demise, solve the mystery of his uncle's most prized possession, and locate a missing pirate's map. While the momentum begins to slow toward the end, a cast of eccentric characters cluding a budding taxidermist sister, an evil museum director, a pink-haired orphan, and a cloud-copter pilot with Indian roots ntinue the fun as the boy battles his way through an evil lair and discovers a secret society of lost treasure hunters. Fans who enjoy the editorializing and over-the-top humor in Wendelin Van Draanen's Gecko and Sticky series will take pleasure in this misfit duo's quirky adventures.