The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse: A Chet Gecko Mystery

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Chet Gecko loves a good mystery. Almost more than he loves his fee--stinkbug pie. So when fellow fourth grader Shirley Chameleon asks him to find her missing brother, Billy, Chet expects the case to be as easy a pie. But Billy's disappearance is part of a larger plot, one that involves the Rat Sisters, a riddling junkyard dog, and a vicious Gila monster named Herman. If Chet doesn't solve the case fast, the entire school could be humiliated. Worst of all, Chet might not get his fee. And Chet's hungry. . . .

Lexile Measure: 410L (What's this?)

Series: Chet Gecko (Book 1)

Paperback: 120 pages

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers; 1 edition (February 16, 2001)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0152024859

ISBN-13: 978-0152024857

Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.3 x 7.5 inches

Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #249,238 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #184 in Books > Children's Books > Animals > Reptiles & Amphibians #1986 in Books > Children's Books > Growing Up & Facts of Life > Friendship, Social Skills & School Life > School #2115 in Books > Children's Books > Mysteries & Detectives

Age Range: 7 - 10 years

Grade Level: 2 - 5

Chet Gecko is a lizard with an attitude. He's also the guy to go to if you have a mystery to solve at Emerson Hicky Elementary School. In the first book of the Chet Gecko mystery series, The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse, Shirley the Chameleon asks for Chet's help in locating her missing brother, a troublesome first grader named Billy. With the promise of a piece of stinkbug pie and a "cootie" filled kiss from Shirley, Chet sets off to solve the mystery.His detective work leads him to an assortment of unsavory characters: the Rat sisters, who steal his lunch and give him misleading clues; two frightening teachers, Mrs. Toaden (a toad) and Mrs. Glick (an alligator), who almost prevent Chet from solving his case; and Herman the Gila Monster, a huge, poisonous, sixth grade football player, who is up to something bad. With the help of a mockingbird friend named Natalie Attired, Chet finds his way in and out of the classroom in his rush to solve the mystery before the football game that afternoon.Author Bruce Hale narrates the story from Chet's point of view, and Chet's smart, cool attitude is portrayed through his thoughts and dialogue. Unique, humorous descriptions serve to highlight each character. However, the sheer number of characters makes the story a bit confusing to follow and doesn't allow the reader to connect as well with the main characters. The plot also drags on and on, and the final conflict doesn't seem to be important enough to take up a whole book. Also, the overly witty dialogue gets a bit redundant at times. Perhaps, for a child, the story is more intriguing than for me as an adult. (I'll have to test it out with my class.)For kids looking for a good laugh and an unusual situation (such as a school consisting of mainly amphibians, reptiles, and rodents), this may be a decent book. While the mystery and plot wasn't particularly interesting, the characters themselves are fun to read about. The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse can be recommended as a light read for children ages 8 and up.

This first Chet Gecko mystery has it all. Danger of the worst disaster possible in elementary school--total public embarrassment--unless our hero can crack the case by the end of the school day. Villains and ne'er-do-wells. A character with true-to-life reptilian traits and appetites but a voice that's half classic sleuth half comic strip. Droll drawings. Gross humor and corny puns. A female classmate who outwits Chet almost to the end. And best of all--there are five more Chet Gecko Mysteries in the works!

Some of my fourth grade second language students were having trouble understanding and enjoying this book, so I picked it up and started to read it to see why. The way in which the dialogue for the characters is written is right out of a 1940's detective movie, and students of this age group and background do not have familiarity with such movies. I decided to read it as a read aloud to the class. It was a HUGE hit! Very humorous! Very witty! Now all the students want to read more of the books and are clamoring for the ones I have.

This book was written in the style of an old Mickey Spillane novel... I found it extremely enjoyable to read to my class! Some parts were a little difficult to understand because of numerous similes... but it was a fun opportunity to work on the subtleties of language. My class wants to read all of the Chet Gecko mysteries now. I highly recommend it for your 9 or 10 year old!

Chet gecko is just one of the many average geckoes at his school but there's something different about him: he's a private eye. Solving mysteries as he solves his math problems, theirs a problem at Chet's school, Billy has gone missing. Is it up to Chet to find him? It won't be that easy. A certain someone is standing in his way. Billy's sister Sherly offers Chet a big piece of stinkbug pie if he could find him. Chet cannot refuse a tasty snack. Chet gets some help from his new sidekick.This was my first book I really enjoyed. I'm now reading the rest of the books in the series. It's a really funny book and it has a great mystery. When I laugh it makes me want to read more.

Then this is the book for you! I'm 8 years old and I read this book...I thought is was GREAT!!! Chet books are great for just sitting down and reading. It makes you laugh but it's also exciting. I recommend this book to kids of all ages.

My son is [...] and hates chapter books, he would much rather be reading non-fiction. When I found the Chet Gecko series at the store, I took a chance and bought the first book. At first my son refused to read it, but after reading the first two chapters aloud as a bedtime story, he was hooked. He has since read all of the Chet Gecko novels and loves each and every one. I have read most of them to my students, (I teach reading recovery in a middle school)and they have always been a huge hit. While he may not be reading Chaucer, I am very happy to see him reading chapter books and enjoying himself. My six year old daughter also loves having the books read to her. I would recommend the Chet Gecko to any child, boy or girl, as a great introduction to mystery novels, detective stories, and bad puns.

This is perfect for kids--not too gross to appeal to girls, not too tame to be liked by the boys. And above all, such an amazing imagination! This is great fun, great entertainment, and great reading even for reluctant kids---a great way to get them hooked, when they're overwhelmed by Harry Potter, but love that kind of stuff.

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