Nate the Great and the Stolen Base

After seeing so many references to the "Nate the Great" books as being classics I decided to try the first one and a few others. The first one was, well, great. "Nate the Great, San Francisco Detective", which is way out there at number 22, was just as good. This book is right from the heart of the series. It is the 14th in the series, first published in 1992. (The series started in 1972.) The illustrations are by Marc Simont, who did the first 20 books.There are some very, very good middle grade noir books that feature a middle grade Sam Spade style detective, and I like them because the tight plotting, snappy dialogue, and clean style is not only entertaining but a good model for young readers and writers. Well, this is basically a chapter book version of that that has the same virtues.Here, we have the usual pals this time around, including Annie, psycho-dog Fang, Oliver the pest and strange Esmeralda.The writing is crisp, which fits perfectly with the noir style and with an early reader's need for sharp, clean, punchy sentences. There is dry humor. There are appealing sidekicks and supporting characters. And, unlike a lot of sloppy mysteries, these books are built on real clues, rigorous logical thought, and common sense. On top of all that, Nate actually displays a bit of that Sam Spade weary hero character that makes noir so special. These really are amongst the most accomplished and stylish of the chapter books and are a happy find.Please note that I found this book while browsing in our local library. I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.

Grandson loved the book as he is interested in baseball

My kinder son loved story time with this book at night. The characters were fun and relatable

I love how easy this is for my early reader and that it is interesting for both of us!

Great book series. I purchased this for my 7 year old son as a reward for helping me around the house. He has read this book out loud to me and we both enjoyed it very much. I look forward to hearing more of the Nate the Great books

I had purchased this book for my 8 year old son who does not have a love of reading. However, he really likes Nate the Great books and wanted this one because he likes baseball also. He liked the book and found it funny (and he still thinks that Rosamond is weird). I like that many of these books have fun facts and activities at the end of the book, which can help to stimulate curiosity and learning. Hooray for Nate the Great books!

This series is awesome!! It is captivating and has enhanced my 5 year old grandson's curiosity. It has taught him use his problem solving skills. I have purchased every book in the series.

For my grandson.

Good book, my newphew loves the books in the series. But this is highly priced and is different from the price tag printed backside

ok deal

My 7 year old daughter loved it.

superb and got it in one day.

アメリカの子供の野球チームが使っているベースがまず面白かったです。お手製の二塁ベースが無くなってしまったという事件が発生。でもネイトが見事に推理し解決します。子供達の真剣な顔が浮かんで微笑ましいストーリー、おすすめです。