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FRIGHTS FOR TYKES solves a haunted castle mystery with “DETECTIVE MOLE”

Wednesday, November 14, 2018 | Exclusive, Frights For Tykes

By GLENN TOLLE

I’ve covered Robert Quackenbush previously in FRIGHTS FOR TYKES. The first time around, I introduced you to SHERIFF SALLY GOPHER, a plucky peacekeeper who solves the creepy mystery of a haunted dance hall. This time around, we will be looking at another frighteningly funny animal fable by Quackenbush, namely, DETECTIVE MOLE AND THE HAUNTED CASTLE MYSTERY published by WILLIAM MORROW & CO in 1985.

In this story, the Rabbit family comes into some money. With their new-found wealth, they decide to bring back a castle from Spain “piece by piece”. Little does the family know that the castle holds many secrets, including a possible ghost and a hidden treasure. After moving in, however, the Rabbits decide to host a masquerade party which triggers strange paranormal activity, prompting them to reach out to Detective Mole. If anyone can sleuth out the truth it’s Detective Mole!  

Quackenbush’s book is a charming little mystery that puts the author’s illustrative talents on full display. Every page is fleshed out to the fullest, making the lean narrative a minor quibble. It’s no CAT AND THE CANARY, but this old dark house (or should I say castle) caper is perfect for the young reader looking to don a deerstalker.

I got my edition of DETECTIVE MOLE AND THE HAUNTED CASTLE MYSTERY at a library sale. Being a library discard I only played $1. You can buy my edition (without the library binding) on AMAZON for $17.61, used, in “Acceptable” condition.

DETECTIVE MOLE AND THE HAUNTED CASTLE MYSTERY is a perfect book for those still too young for SHERLOCK HOLMES.

Glenn Tolle
Glenn Tolle grew up with a healthy interest in the macabre. His dad worked, and still works, as a grave digger, and much of his childhood was spent running around cemeteries and reading creepy books. All this combined with early viewings of the classic Universal monster movies led him to writing about the genre. He writes not only for RUE MORGUE.com but also for morbidlybeautiful.com under the pen name Glenn Strange. When not writing about horror Glenn talks about and interviews people within the horror and film community for the YouTube channel Psychic Celluloid Signals and creates original horror stories for publication.