They solve crimes, catch crooks, crack codes… and ride the bus back to school afterward. Meet Egg, Gum, Sam, and Cat. Four sixth-grade detectives and best friends. Wherever field trips take them, mysteries aren’t far behind…

Learn More About Us

Catalina

Catalina Duran

  • A.K.A. Cat
  • D.O.B. February 15
  • Position: 6th grade
Though she does love animals, Cat is really just a short version of her real name, Catalina. Cat also loves science class — that’s where she learns about animals! She’s also crazy about art class — that’s where she can look at paintings of animals. Cat never litters, and always recycles, and is nice to everyone… even Anton!

James

James Shoo

  • A.K.A. Gum
  • D.O.B. November 19
  • Position: 6th grade
Gum really loves chewing gum, but that’s not why he’s called Gum. Actually, it’s a name Sam gave him, and it’s short for “gumshoe.” That’s one of Sam’s old-movie words, meaning “detective.” Besides chewing gum, Gum loves blaming every crime on Anton.

Edward

Edward G. Garrison

  • A.K.A. Egg
  • D.O.B. May 14
  • Position: 6th grade
Egg is the shortest kid in sixth grade. He’s also probably the smartest. That’s not what he’s known for, though; he’s famous for always having a big fancy camera around his neck. The pictures he takes really come in handy for evidence.

Samantha

Samantha Archer

  • A.K.A. Sam
  • D.O.B. August 20
  • Position: 6th grade
Sam lives with her grandparents. She’s always watching old Westerns and detective movies with them. Someday, she hopes to be a real private eye, so she already talks like one of the detectives from the movies. Sam also happens to be the tallest kid in sixth grade. She’s even taller than our teacher!

Learn More About Our Teach & Classmate:

Cutman

Anton Gutman
This guy is the class prankster. He’ll do anything for a laugh — at least a laugh from his goon friends. No one else laughs at Anton’s antics. Mr. Spade doesn’t have any sense of humor when it comes to Anton. He’s assigned about a hundred detentions to Anton this year alone!

Spade

Mr. Spade
Mr. Spade is the sixth-grade teacher. He teaches everything from math to history to grammar and beyond. But every morning, he also brings us to our special classes, such as Art and Science. Mr. Spade doesn’t always go on our field trips with us, but he likes hearing about them afterward.

Learn About the Books We're In

The Painting that Wasn’t There
James "Gum" Shoo's art class heads to the museum. They've been learning about forged art, but they never expected to find a fake in the gallery! Only Gum and his gumshoe friends will be able to solve this museum caper.

The Teacher That Forgot Too Much
Catalina "Cat" Duran and her class are off to the recycling center for what seems like the worst field trip ever. But when they arrive, they find out that the recycling plant has been sabotaged! Only Cat and her friends can save the day (and help save the Earth, too!).

The Village That Almost Vanished
Samantha Archer, also known as Sam, couldn't be more excited about her class trip to Scrub Brush, the cool frontier town. But from the second they arrive at the historic village, it's clear someone's trying to make the whole town disappear. Can Sam and her friends save Scrub Brush?

The Zoo with the Empty Cage
Edward G. Garrison, better known as Egg, is pretty excited about the Science Club's field trip to the zoo. They'll get to see a rare display of Island Foxes, an endangered species. But when the club arrives, they learn that the foxes have been nabbed! Can Egg and his friends find the foxes?

Downloadables

Evidence Bag and Tape

Famous Detectives

Fingerprint Database

Footprints

How to Lift Fingerprints

Invisible Ink Recipe

My Business Cards

Sneaky Disguises

Poster 1

Poster 2

Learn About The Author - Cari Meister

Steve Brezenoff is the author of several titles for Stone Arch Books, including The Mummy at Midnight, Burning Secrets, I Dare You!, and Alley of Shadows, as well as the soon-to-be-released series Field Trip Mysteries. Steve was born and raised outside of New York City, and then lived in Brooklyn and Queens and worked in Manhattan in children’s publishing. He got sick of the hustle and bustle, though, and now lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he enjoys cycling and long walks with his wife, Beth, their young son, Sam, and their dog, Harry.