Room One: A Mystery or Two

Ted Hammond loves a good mystery, and in the spring of his fifth-grade year, he's working on a big one. How can his school in the little town of Plattsford stay open next year if there are going to be only five students? Out here on the Great Plains in western Nebraska, everyone understands that if you lose the school, you lose the town.

But the mystery that has Ted's full attention at the moment is about that face, the face he sees in the upper window of the Andersons' house as he rides past on his paper route. The Andersons moved away two years ago, and their old farmhouse is empty, boarded up tight. At least it's supposed to be.

A shrinking school in a dying town. A face in the window of an empty house. At first these facts don't seem to be related. But Ted Hammond learns that in a very small town, there's no such thing as an isolated event. And the solution of one mystery is often the beginning of another.

Author: Andrew Clements
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 07/01/2006
Pages: 176
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.60lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.70w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9780689866869
Audience: Ages 9-12

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 5.1
Point Value: 4
Interest Level: Middle Grade
Quiz #/Name: 106750 / Room One: A Mystery or Two


Award: Edgar Allan Poe Awards - Winner
Award: Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award - Nominee
Award: Agatha Awards - Nominee
Award: North Carolina Children's Book Award - Nominee
Award: Volunteer State Book Awards - Nominee
Award: Louisiana Young Readers' Choice Award - Nominee
Award: Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award - Nominee
Award: South Carolina Childrens, Junior and Young Adult Book Award - Nominee
Award: Golden Sower Award - Honor Book
Award: Young Hoosier Book Award - Nominee
Award: Young Reader's Choice Award - Nominee


Review Citation(s):
Booklist 05/01/2006 pg. 47
Kirkus Review - Children 06/01/2006 pg. 570
Publishers Weekly 06/12/2006 pg. 53
School Library Journal 07/01/2006 pg. 98
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 09/01/2006 pg. 9 - Recommended
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2007 pg. 66 - Recommended, Satisfactory

About the Author
Andrew Clements (1949-2019) was the author of the enormously popular Frindle. More than 10 million copies of his books have been sold, and he was nominated for a multitude of state awards, including a Christopher Award and an Edgar Award. His popular works include About Average, Troublemaker, Extra Credit, Lost and Found, No Talking, Room One, Lunch Money, and more. He was also the author of the Benjamin Pratt & the Keepers of the School series. Find out more at AndrewClements.com.

Mark Elliott has a BFA in illustration from the School of Visual Arts. He has illustrated a number of book covers, and his work has been exhibited at the Society of Illustrators and the Art Directors Guild. Mark lives on a sheep farm in the Hudson Valley region of New York.