“Wretched thieves!” cried a small creature as it scurried through the snow. “Thieving wretches!”
– opening line of The First Case by Ulf Nilsson
An exciting read aloud series is great. My kids love books like Ninja Meerkats, Magic Tree House Series, and The Chronicles of Narnia. Let’s be honest, I love an exciting story line, too! When the action is fast and furious, we sit on the edge of our seats, wanting to hear the next chapter.
However, there is something wonderful about sharing a gentler read aloud series with your kids.
I consider a book “gentle” when the action is quiet. No one yells at each other. There is no emotional angst. The characters are calm, and wise. Most of the action that occurs is fairly normal, everyday things. It’s just a soft, lovely story.
I probably like gentle books because I am not a naturally gentle person. I tend to be fairly busy. If we’re being honest, I might occasionally be characterized as a bit frantic. I am very emotional. I have always had feelings that were too big to keep inside.
When I feel like I am spinning too quickly, I like to choose quieter, gentle books for our read aloud time.
The Detective Gordon Series fits the bill. These books are beautiful, fully illustrated chapter books about Detective Gordon. He is a plump frog who, as head detective, cares for the creatures in the forest.
Now, you might expect a book with a detective as the title character to be filled with intrigue and adventure. While there are mysteries to be solved in the books, overall the tone is very soft.
Detective Gordon is so kind. He says these beautiful things about trusting people, and how everyone matters. Detective Gordon is like if Mr. Rogers were an overweight, Swedish frog who also solved crime.
As I am reading the books to my kids I feel that muscle on the left side of my neck where I carry all of my stress start to melt just a little bit. That is a lovely feeling, and I need more books that make me relax while reading them.
It helps, too, that my son really enjoys the stories. Reading a whole chapter with no complaining is good for my stress level, too!
Check out the video review below to find out what I liked and didn’t like about the book, what ages it would be good for, and anything questionable that you need to know about before picking this series up.
You can scroll past the video for just the bare book details. If you don’t watch the video, make sure to scroll down to read the Special Considerations section so that you aren’t blindsided by something in the book that might be a touchy subject for some people. (Honestly, though, the video review is much more comprehensive, and it’s only a few minutes long.)
Detective Gordon Series
Title: The First Case
Author: Ulf Nilsson
Illustrator: Gitte Spee
Details: Gecko Press, 2015
Number of Pages: 92 pages
Number of Chapters: 12 chapters
Average Chapter Length: 8 pages
Picture Frequency: at least one picture on every page, some pages are only picture
Title: A Complicated Case
Author: Ulf Nilsson
Illustrator: Gitte Spee
Details: Gecko Press, 2016
Number of Pages: 108 pages
Number of Chapters: 12 chapters
Average Chapter Length: 9 pages
Picture Frequency: at least one picture on every page, some pages are only picture
Title: A Case in Any Case
Author: Ulf Nilsson
Illustrator: Gitte Spee
Details: Gecko Press, 2017
Number of Pages: 108 pages
Number of Chapters: 12 chapters
Average Chapter Length: 9 pages
Picture Frequency: at least one picture on every page, some pages are only picture
Title: A Case for Buffy
Author: Ulf Nilsson
Illustrator: Gitte Spee
Details: Gecko Press, 2018
Number of Pages: 108 pages
Number of Chapters: 12 chapters
Average Chapter Length: 9 pages
Picture Frequency: at least one picture on every page, some pages are only picture
Special Considerations: Content wise, the “cases” that Detective Gordon and Detective Buffy solve are very tame. In A Case, in Any Case, there are some missing children, but the author shows that the children have just wandered off to play. We know that the children are safe before the detectives do.
However, there are a few things that I think got lost in translation when these books were being translated into English. For example, at one point Detective Gordon calls Buffy an idiot child.
Yep. Let me tell you, that line took me by surprise in such an otherwise lovely read aloud series! Also, it’s not at all in line with how the sweet, understanding Gordon talks throughout the series. It seems so out of place that I think it might be something that got translated more strongly than the original text. There are just a few words like that to be aware of so you aren’t caught off guard while reading.
My Thoughts: This is definitely one of my favorite read aloud series! I like everything about it, from the sweet stories, to the beautiful pictures, to the creative chapter titles. We all love it!
I highly recommend this series for children 5 years old and up. If you are willing to explain some of the tougher vocabulary words, you could easily read this to children younger than 5. I think if you are willing to make the commitment to explain those tough vocabulary words you could go as young as 3 years old. If you do that, however, keep in mind that the chapters are 8 or 9 pages long. That is definitely too long for a child that young to sit through a whole chapter. So, think a page or two at a time for the very young listeners.
I give the Detective Gordon 5 out of 5 ears! The whole series is wonderful!
Have you read the Detective Gordon books? Do you have suggestions for more gentle read aloud chapter books?
