It was an “awful, scrambled-up day” when Humpty, newly appointed captain of the Neighborhood Watch program, fell off the Wall. Fortunately for him, while Miss Muffet called 911 on her cell, his brother Joe, a trenchcoat-wearing, hard-boiled detective, begins investigating. Although Mother Goose (also known as the Chief of Police) says there’s no case to crack, she gives Joe until 5:00 p.m. to prove differently before she officially declares the fall an accident. Spider reports a strong puff of wind that may have knocked Humpty from his perch, the blonde in the Bears’ house heard howling dogs around the time of the incident, and it all confirms Chicken Little’s theory that the sky is falling. Joe adds up the pieces, along with some muffin evidence, uncovering a conspiracy theory implicating—you guessed it—the Big Bad Wolf. Clever word play stars in this entertaining noir scramble of familiar tales. (Ages 5–10)

Joe Dumpty, private detective and brother of Humpty Dumpty, sets out to solve the mystery of who pushed Humpty off the wall. Filled with puns, the story is complemented by a graphic-novel design and hilarious renderings of familiar nursery-rhyme characters. Full color.