Marvin Miller (1)

Never mind the courtroom setting. Just as in Encyclopedia Brown, no need to mind the characters, jokes, and Idaville hokiness. Really these are brain-teasers. And I love 'em. And I smack myself when I don't solve them. Miller's are actually better than Sobol's because there's less likelihood of a gap in logic or of the need for knowledge of trivia.

Never mind the courtroom setting. Just as in Encyclopedia Brown, no need to mind the characters, jokes, and Idaville hokiness. Really these are brain-teasers. And I love 'em. And I smack myself when I don't solve them. Miller's are actually better than Sobol's because there's less likelihood of a gap in logic or of the need for knowledge of trivia.

Even better than the Encyclopedia Brown stories! Almost all are solvable by logic and observation of given evidence, and yet they really made me think. Also, I was annoyed with myself about the ones I didn't get, as I should have. I am glad my library has a few of this series and will look for more elsewhere.

Finally a worthy companion to Encyclopedia Brown. All were solvable, some even at the first reveal of the sketch (before the pondering, which is before the answer). But they still make the reader think, and exercise the reader's talents in a way that will serve them in real life situations that call for careful observation.

I was lucky enough to find a copy in a Little Free Library but you can check openlibrary.org.