Publishers Weekly
In the fourth book in the series that began with Little Wolf's Book of Badness, Little Wolf, Forest Detective by Ian Whybrow, the hero and his friends join forces, creating The Yelloweyes Forest Detective Agency (YFDA). The sleuths must prove their worth when an elusive suspect prompts Little Wolf's father to hire a "professional" detective, Furlock Holmes-Wolf. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
School Library Journal
Gr 2-4-A continuation of the series begun in Little Wolf's Book of Badness (Carolrhoda, 1999). Here, baby animals are disappearing from the forest and it is up to Little Wolf, his brother Smelly Breff, and Stubbs the Crow to crack the case. Together they form the Yellow Eyes Detective Agency. As the investigators stumble across increasingly bizarre clues, Little Wolf sends letters about his adventures home to his parents. These notes, full of misspellings, alarm the little wolf's father so much that he is compelled to send a "real investigator" to bail the group out. The story is aimed at beginning chapter-book readers, but Little Wolf's cobbled-together language may be difficult for them to follow at first. Visual aids are offered in the form of scrawlings and scribblings from the talented artist. A good sense of adventure may keep otherwise confused readers rushing along to the end. Dav Pilkey fans might find this comical tale a good gap filler while waiting for the next "Captain Underpants" (Scholastic).-Alison Kastner, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Kirkus Reviews
From Frettnin Forest, Beastshire, the orthographically challenged correspondent introduced in Little Wolf's Book of Badness (1999) again reports nefarious doings and silly misadventures to his unsympathetic parents. A number of local baby animals having gone missing, along with some from a visiting circus, and Little Wolf and his associates at the newly formed Yelloweyes Forest Detective Agency take up their mail-order sleuth kits and spring into action. As usual, it all turns out to be the doing of Mr. Twister the fox, who with a homemade gene-modifying machine is recombining his captives into such useful new creatures as cat/spiders to guard his digs, a vegetarian lamb/lion, and a succulent hyena/mouse that can't hide no matter how tall the grass. A Gen-Next e-mailer in the making, Little Wolf adorns his letters and blot-marred handwritten postscripts with creative spelling and made up words-"But do not fret and frown, we will solve this case soonly, easy cheesy. (Probly.)"-to which Ross adds plenty of sketchy cartoon portraits and vignettes. Once Mr. Twister has been sent packing (to return, no doubt, in future episodes), Little Wolf, his friends, and even obnoxious little brother Smellybreff throw over detective work to join the circus. Readers unfamiliar with this import's first three installments may trip over a few continuing plot threads, but there's plenty of noodleheaded humor, plus healthy doses of deduction and derring-do, to keep the howls coming. (Fiction. 8-10)
