The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery

I had read this book back in grade school in the early 90s, and it stuck with me so much that 30 years later I bought it so that I could enjoy it with my daughter. The story itself is interesting and fun to read through, with fantastic writing and gorgeous artwork on every page. However, the real experience of this book begins once you finish the story and start diving into the "mystery". My daughter and I had so much fun revisiting every page searching for clues to be able to decipher the secret codes and uncover the mystery central to the story. The back of the book is presented as sort of a "case file" with information, solutions to all the riddles, and explanations of the various hidden clues. As a kid, I remember reading this book over and over again, probably once every month or two, and I look forward to being able to enjoy it with my daughter over and over again.

Amazingly creative and engaging! We read the book as a family affair, decoding all sorts of ciphers throughout the book. A book for any age, though usually labeled as a juvenile edition. Adults may actually appreciate the intricacies of the artwork more than a young child reading it. I'm 74 and LOVE it!

I’ve been buying editions of this book for more years than I can remember. I gift it to every 8-12 year old, boy or girl, in my life. Beautifully illustrated and it contains a story, within a story, and then another story. Any child that lives a mystery or has a detective inclination will appreciate this book.

This is a wonderful book for kids and adults alike and especially for kids and adults together. Highly recommend.

Beautifully written and illustrated. Love the sealed section for adults.

This is a book you could read in a few minutes, but if you want to solve the whodunit mystery within this 32-page story, prepare to spend several hours poring over the text and illustrations. Despite the author’s claim on the Notes for Detectives page that it is quite easy to discover which of the 11 animals stole the feast, it is not. So, please don’t feel stupid if you don’t figure it out right away. There is an easy way to figure it out, however, that is presented on that same Notes for Detectives page, and that is to solve the simple letter substitution code on that page. The first letter of the animal who stole the feast is the letter you substitute for the first letter of the coded message. If you simply plug in the first letter of each animal in turn, by the 10th try you should have the answer (you don’t need to do it 11 times, because if the 10th try doesn’t work, you automatically know the 11th one is correct).One thing you should know if you read this book, is that you need really good eyesight or a really good magnifying glass. Because the illustrations are so finely detailed and the clues are buried in these details, they are many times quite difficult to spot. If you’re over 40, you will probably need some excellent reading glasses or that magnifying glass. You will also have to reread the text many times, and go back and forth between the pages, scrutinizing the text and illustrations. If you’re really into solving puzzles, you could easily spend all day with this book, so make sure you have no work to do before you pick it up and start reading.All in all, this is one of the best detective stories I have ever read.

Extremely fun, for your children or your inner child.

My kids (13,11,8) and I enjoyed solving these clues so much! Left it on the table for a week and the kids would work on it anytime they could. One night we stayed up so late, determined to solve the mystery! Great for critical thinking and problem solving! Great for bonding!!

Another beautiful book by the amazing Graeme Base. Such beautiful writing and a creative story that really engages the reader. Both young and old will find this book wonderful to read. I remember reading it as a child and I thoroughly enjoying buying it for my 3rd year old and reading it again. The illustrations are simply incredible too.Highly recommend!

A colourful happy book. There's a mystery to be solved and every page is so beautifully illustrated. My kids love reading it.

Beautiful illustrations, an interesting puzzle of a story book! I had a Graeme Base book as a child and adored it, I'm pleased to say this book is more of the same. A poem tells the story of animals attending a fancy dress birthday party, and a mystery which needs solving - the clues are very well hidden within the lavish illustrations, and it even includes a solution at the back if you really can't solve the puzzle.... or , for example, if you've solved the mystery but want to know what exactly the clue on page 8 meant! Highly recommended for children and adults alike

I got this for my husband how loved it as a child. It was great quality

Arrived on time, good condition