Book Review: The Case of the Nasty Notes

Reviewed by Elizabeth Reiser

A sweet middle-grade mystery about a boy and his dog on the quest to stop a bully

Ben and his loyal Basset Hound are back for the second installment of the Ben & Blue series: The Case of the Nasty Notes. This time, they are on a mission to find out who is sending their friend Cooper mean poems.

Just as you’d hope for, this second book works well as a standalone. The author does a great job reintroducing the characters, and new young readers will be able to hop into it easily.

Ben is kindhearted and energetic, and Ellen Melissa Cohen captures the voice of the young boy perfectly. His frenetic energy comes through the pages with an effective use of fragments in narration. It is also lovely how Ben never manages to be malicious when thinking about the person bullying his friend; if anything, he shows great empathy when realizing there are instances when he hasn’t been so nice himself, like in the case of a classmate with ADHD.

Ben’s best human friend, Cooper, is another delightful character. Spirited and confident, she expresses her emotions by spiking her hair and spraying it different colors to match her mood. Cohen emphasizes the impact both the bullying and the divorce of her parents are having on her by using her hair.

Throughout the book, Cooper’s hair slowly goes to more muted colors with smaller spikes until her hair reaches its natural state. It is a subtle and significant way to highlight her folding into herself, and this loss of his friend’s spark propels Ben to work even harder to solve the mystery.

While bullying is the overarching theme for the book, Cohen also touches on the notion of finding yourself and being honest about that self. This is shown via one of the other things causing Cooper’s sadness, mainly her dad dating after the divorce. Cooper is dealing with her anger of not wanting things to change, but eventually she is led to acceptance when she realizes her parents have layers that she hasn’t yet learned about. This storyline will strike a chord with readers from LGBTQ+ families and is handled so that it reads as heartfelt and believable.

Donald Wu’s illustrations add a fantastic visual layer to the book as well. Wu captures Cohen’s descriptions accurately and with personality. This is especially apt for the scenes at the zoo or involving the dogs, which will appeal to any animal lover reading.

This is a touching book about kindness, inclusion, and being true to yourself. Lovable characters, heartfelt stories, and an altogether charming series—the Ben and Blue series is about to get some new, devoted fans after this installment.

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