Top 14 Mystery Books For 5th Graders Updated 05 /2024

Airborn

by: Kenneth Oppel - (Eos, 2004) 544 pages.

On the Aurora, Matt is a cabin boy. It is a very nice airship that costs a lot of money. Matt meets Kate, who has set up a flight on the Aurora so that she can look into diary entries her grandfather made about big, cat-like creatures with bat-like wings. Soon, pirates attack the Aurora and it is forced to land on a tropical island because of a storm, so it has to go there. Matt and Kate were exploring the island when they found the bones of one of the "cloud cats." They also saw one living in the trees. But the pirates, who live on the same island, take them in. There are a lot of people in this place. Will Matt and Kate make it out? If you keep turning the pages, you won't be able to stop until you know the answer! A lot of action doesn't make it hard for the characters to grow. These people are good at what they do. Matt and Kate are good people, the pirates are bad, and even the airship Aurora has its own personality.

Chasing Vermeer

by: Blue Balliett - (Scholastic, 2004) 254 pages.

Mystery letters, picture puzzles called "pentominoes," and a stolen painting by Dutch artist Vermeer bring together two people who don't know each other. They work together to solve a mystery.

When Petra and Calder meet because of a book about strange things, weird things start to happen. Before they know it, the two are at the center of an international art scandal, where no one is safe. With each clue they find, Petra and Calder must use their intuition, problem-solving skills, and knowledge of Vermeer to help them get out of the labyrinth and find the way out. It has even stumped the FBI.

Encyclopedia Brown Cracks the Case

by: Donald J. Sobol - (Dutton, 2007) 128 pages.

Children will have a lot of fun beating Encyclopedia Brown to the answer in each of these 10 short stories. This collection is good for people who want to learn more about history and science, because each case requires a different kind of knowledge to solve.

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

by: E.L. Konigsburg - (Simon & Schuster, 1967) 162 pages.

Claudia, 12, and her younger brother Jamie are fleeing their parents' tyranny and the drudgery of everyday life. For their new home, Claudia has chosen the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which is full of beautiful art. Quite by accident, they come across a statue by none other than Michelangelo...or is it? Newbery Prize winner in 1967: The winner of the 1967 Newbery Award.

She knows she doesn't just want to run away from somewhere. She wants to run to somewhere, too." To a place that is cozy, beautiful, and, if possible, elegant. Then, after a lot of planning, she and her younger brother, Jamie, managed to get away. They ended up in a story that was all over the news!

The Homework Machine

by: Dan Gutman - (Simon & Schuster, 2006) 160 pages

A book about a computer that was supposed to make kids' lives easier will make young readers think of their classmates and even themselves. The witnesses who describe the events in an interrogation-style way will be able to identify them to young readers. It did not.

The Lady Grace Mysteries

by: Lady Grace Cavendish - (Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2004)

Lady Grace Cavendish is the name of a series of books written by a number of different people (Random House, 2004-2006). Lady Grace Cavendish is the Nancy Drew of the Elizabethan era. She is an independent-minded teen who happens to have a godmother who happens to be Elizabeth I. In each book, there are intrigues and rivalries at the court, swashbucklers, unlikely friends, and a mystery. This makes these historical novels very interesting.

Spy Force Mission: In Search of the Time and Space Machine

by: Deborah Abela, illustrated by: George O'Connor - (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 2005) 240 pages.

Boredom doesn't bother an 11-year-old girl when she spends the summer at her aunt's farm. She meets a lot of new people and has a lot of fun. It makes her secret agent stories come to life when she finds a real spy ring. This is the best thriller for our time.

Time Stops for No Mouse

by: Michael Hoeye - (Putnam, 2002) 279 pages.

It turns out that Hermux is a watchmaker who is also a mouse. He is usually happy with his life of order and quiet nights with some cheese and a good book. That changes when Linka Perflinger, an aviatrix and daredevil, comes into the picture and then mysteriously leaves.

Holes 

by Louis Sachar

It's bad for Stanley Yelnats to have bad luck. As a curse that began with his grandfather's no-good, dirty rotten-pig-stealing grandfather and has been passed down through the Yelnats family for many years. Here, at Camp Green Lake, the boys learn how to be good people by digging holes that are exactly five feet wide and five feet deep all day, every day. At Camp Green Lake, there is no lake. Many holes, but.

The Candymakers 

by Wendy Mass

The four kids who live in the town of Spring Haven have been chosen to compete in the national candy-making contest of a lifetime. The Oozing Crunchorama or the Neon Yellow Lightning Chew are two of the best candies. Who will make a candy that tastes better than them? This sweet, charming, and cleverly written story, which is told from the point of view of each contestant, is full of mystery, friendship, and juicy revelations.

Liar and Spy 

by Rebecca Stead

There is a sign on the door of the basement: SPY CLUB MEETING - TODAY! : That's how he met his 12-year-old neighbor, Safer. He and Georges quickly become friends and spies. Why did they do this? To find out who the mysterious Mr. X is who lives upstairs. But as Safer's requests get more and more difficult, Georges wonders: "How far can you go for your only friend?"

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