Humpty Dumpty Jr. has always gotten the bad guy. Always. Except once, when the case got too personal. You know that case. The one about his Dad...

And now, a frantic call for help tells him that someone is making it personal again. "Johnny" Cakes, a two-bit pancake punk, has escaped from jail. And Patty, of the famous (and delicious) Pat-A-Cake Bakery, has disappeared. Could "Johnny" Cakes be behind it? Whoever kidnapped Patty better watch out; Humpty is no soft-cooked Egg. He is 100% Hardboiled.

From the (fairly) scrambled minds of three acclaimed children's writers and illustrators comes a hilarious new detective who always cracks the case. Set on the grimy streets of New Yolk City, where the Queen of Hearts lives in Queens (where else?), the adventures of Humpty Dumpty Jr. are sure to delight early and chapter-book readers alike. This is the start of a very funny, totally action-packed new series no one will want to miss!

"Once Upon a Crime:

There was a detective. Me.

Humpty Dumpty Jr., Hardboiled Detective. I'm a good egg who always cracks the case. One morning, sitting at my desk, I watched the sun rise out my grimy window. Dawn light played peek-a-boo through the tall skyscrapers of the gritty city.

My city.

New Yolk City."