Thanksgiving morning smells like cinnamon, butter, and roasting turkey. Then Phoebe Ann scratches at the door with serious news: the centerpiece pie is gone, the turkey timer is silent, and the backyard squirrels are marching in a suspiciously straight line. Oliver Doodle pushes up his glasses, straps on his backpack, and starts where every good mystery starts. With crumbs. Phoebe Ann, a brindle French bulldog in pearls, is not about to let Thanksgiving be outsmarted. Maple the cat joins from a sunny porch. Benny the squirrel insists he is not part of any pie plot, even with cinnamon on his whiskers. Above them, Grandma Dot’s clever crow, Indigo, calls, “This way!” The trail leads past the fence, through crunching leaves, and to a little woodland table where the missing pie sits in the middle. Oliver does not stomp. He does not shout. He sits down in the leaves and listens. A warm Thanksgiving picture book about clues, crumbs, and making room at the table. For families who want ...
