McGurk Mysteries

The McGurk Mysteries are a series of late-elementary/middle grades books by E.W. Hildick from the 1970s through the 1990s. They feature the McGurk Detective Organization, led by 10-year-old Jack P. McGurk. The books are narrated by fellow detective Joseph "Joey" B. Rockaway, the agency's secretary. The other founding member of the agency is William "Willie" / "The Nose" S. Sandowsky, and over time they add Wanda Greig, Gerald "Brains" Bellingham, and in later books, Mari Yoshimura.

We're first introduced to the characters of Joey and McGurk as they observe new kid on the block Willie sniffing empty moving boxes in his back yard. They learn that 1. Willie has lost his brand new catcher's mitt, and 2. has such an incredible sense of smell that he'll be able to detect the lingering scent of leather in whichever box it had been packed. McGurk has the idea to form a detective agency predicated largely on this human bloodhound and, being McGurk, immediately persuades the others to enlist in this brilliant scheme, and they set up headquarters in his basement.

Throughout the stories, Joey plays the sensible, sympathetic narrator as he tells us of McGurk's pushy and determined shenanigans. These books don't have the zany antics of Alvin Fernald, but the kids have more of a kid-centered social life than you get with Henry Huggins. You could describe it as Nate the Great for older kids. (If you want still older, and more excitement, try The Mad Scientists' Club and sequels/prequels.)

Most books in the series don't have "McGurk" in the title, but many editions will include "A McGurk Mystery" on the cover, illustrations you'll learn to recognize, and in the case of the HarperCollins paperbacks, an icon of a redheaded detective with his magnifying glass.

0. The Nose Knows (1974)
1. Deadline for McGurk (1974) (Also known as "Dolls in Danger")
2. The Case of the Condemned Cat (1975)
3. The Menaced Midget (1975)
4. The Case of the Nervous Newsboy (1976)
5. The Great Rabbit Rip-Off (1976) (Also known as "The Great Rabbit Robbery")
6. The Case of the Invisible Dog (1977)
7. The Case of the Secret Scribbler (1978)
8. The Case of the Phantom Frog (1979)
9. The Case of the Treetop Treasure (1980)
10. The Case of the Snowbound Spy (1980)
11. The Case of the Bashful Bank Robber (1981)
12. The Case of the Four Flying Fingers (1981)
13. McGurk Gets Good and Mad (1982)
14. The Case of the Felon's Fiddle (1982)
15. The Case of the Slingshot Sniper (1983)
16. The Case of the Vanishing Ventriloquist (1985)
17. The Case of the Muttering Mummy (1986)
18. The Case of the Wandering Weathervanes (1988)
19. The Case of the Purloined Parrot (1990)
20. The Case of the Desperate Drummer (1993)
21. The Case of the Fantastic Footprints (1994)
22. The Case of the Absent Author (1995)
23. The Case of the Wiggling Wig (1996)

Note that you can read the first McGurk book (and more) for free online at The Internet Archive's Open Library: https://openlibrary.org/works/OL2642306W/The_nose_knows (Other books by Hildick: https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL385080A/E._W._Hildick