Review Detail

What I Liked: Our favorite reluctant super sleuth is back with several more situations that only he can crack. Gibbs highlights the plight of animals that are involved in the illegal exotic animal trade as well in this book.
It all begins with Summer and Teddy’s friend Sage having a neat secret on his family’s sprawling ranch. They go to check out the Tyrannosaurus bones complete with the most intact skull to date only to stumble on the archeology scene as a crime scene instead. The skull is missing in what appears to be an impossible heist. Heavy rains would make it very difficult to have removed the skull and very easy to see any footprints. Yet there is nothing. The local police think Sage’s family made it up and then decide all evidence points to JJ McCracken because he had called to purchase the skull prior to the theft. They even try to arrest him and with Marge there the scene devolved into a hilarious disaster. This leaves Teddy committed to helping his friend’s family recover the skull in time to save their ranch from debt. Their investigation leads to many suspects and little evidence putting Teddy’s deductive skills to the test.
The story is interspersed with Tim and Jim Barksdale the not-so-brilliant school bullies needing Teddy’s help with a 15-foot anaconda they bought from a shady dealer that just ate their mean cat. So, Teddy has to save them from their own ill-advised purchase of an anaconda, alligator, and cobra and uncover who is selling these animals and try to stop them.
These two separate plots lead to two scenes in which my son and I laughed till our sides hurt. Gibbs offers a spectacularly hilarious and disastrous big reveal of the culprit and wrap-up of the two investigations.
Final Verdict: This is another win in the Funjungle series. The humor and quick-moving plot ensure that adults and kids alike will stay engaged. I continue to admire how Gibbs raises awareness and advocacy for the plight of the animals in this series. This was certainly a book we went and purchased a copy of to read again.