Currently reading
The Golden Slipper and Other Problems for Violet Strange
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life
Skippy Dies
Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History
A Short History of Nearly Everything
The Blind Assassin
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
How To Teach English
I loved these books as a kid. Now that I think about it though, this isn't so much about a clever Sherlockian piecing together of clues, as it is about being able to spot inconsistencies in stories. Save for the one about the Spanish map and the museum janitor, Encyclopedia Brown solved cases because the perpetrator was a terrible liar, and usually talked too much. People who lie with too much detail eventually let something slip, or use an inaccurate detail, and that gives them away.So remember kids: If you have to make up a story, stick to the facts, and lie by omission.