The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity (Simon and Schuster, 2009) by Mac Barnett illustrated by Adam Rex is one funny mystery. The story is modeled after the old time kid detective novels, so expect some corn.
12-year-old Steve Brixton is enamored of the old mystery books about the Bailey brothers and himself gets mistaken for a detective by the Librarians (under cover agents) when he checks out a book on quilts at the library. He’s on the run from the police, including Jerk Rick who’s dating Steve’s mom. The only way to prove himself innocent is to solve the case.
Author Mac Barnett bills himself as “writer and strongman-for-hire” on his website. Check out the piano keys for more details.
But wait! There’s more. 
The sequel Brixton Brothers 2: The Ghostwriter Secret came out last fall and is on my to-be-read list. The next in the series, It Happened on a Train, will come out this October.
Illustrator Adam Rex is the author/illustrator of The True Meaning of Smekday. What? You haven’t read it? Learn more here about that title and stuff about Adam on his site where Abraham Superlincoln tells you to “choose wisely.”
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