A Family of Detectives

By Harry Char

On this crisp, cool Tuesday morning, Carson woke up and got out of bed. He looked at the clock. It was still early, 7:00 in the morning. Except for Dad, who had already driven to work, everybody else in the house was still in bed. He still had time to meet his friends and accompany them on his bike to their elementary school.
He went into the bathroom, put some toothpaste on his brush, and began cleaning his teeth. He turned on the water in the basin, wet his washrag, applied some soap, and washed his face. Now he felt completely awake. He was up for the day. He went back to his room and pulled his black T-shirt over himself. The shirt had a picture of his family painted on the front, everybody except for baby Cassidy. Next time his grandfather came to visit, hell have to ask him to add his little sister to the picture, Carson reminded himself. He reached for a pair of blue trousers and put them on. He then pulled out a pair of socks from his drawer and went down the stairs to put on his shoes. He was ready to go.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Sep 26, 2009
• ISBN: 9781477171370

Harry Char

Harry Char was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. He and his wife Walnita live in Hilo on the island of Hawaii. They were married in Vogelweh, Germany 53 years ago. Following high school, the author served on active duty with the army. He later joined the Coast Guard reserve, retiring with the rank of Captain after 30 years. He graduated from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota and received a master’s degree from the University of Hawaii. He taught school in Nevis, Minnesota, Kaiserslautern, Germany, and in Hawaii. He retired as principal of an elementary school in Hilo. Over the years, the author has written short stories to encourage his children and grandchildren to read, to build confidence and self-esteem, to trust in God, and to develop godly values. This collection of stories features the author’s children, Duane and Dana Jean, and two grandsons, Lewis and Carson. The stories are set in Hawaii, and also in Arizona where DanaJean’s family lived for two years.

Book preview

Copyright © 2009 by Harry Char. 63863-CHAR

ISBN: Softcover 978-1-4415-6596-9

Ebook 978-1-4771-7137-0

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission

in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

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Contents

THE MAN WHO

COULD NOT READ

THE CASE OF THE

MISSING BICYCLE

THE CASE OF THE

BROKEN PIPE

THE STORY BEHIND GOLDILOCKS AND

THE THREE BEARS

THE MAN WHO

COULD NOT READ

missing image file

Carson at age 9

THE MAN WHO COULD NOT READ

On this crisp, cool Tuesday morning, Carson woke up and got out of bed. He looked at the clock. It was still early, 7:00 in the morning. Except for Dad, who had already driven to work, everybody else in the house was still in bed. He still had time to meet his friends and accompany them on his bike to their elementary school.

He went into the bathroom, put some toothpaste on his brush, and began cleaning his teeth. He turned on the water in the basin, wet his washrag, applied some soap, and washed his face. Now he felt completely awake. He was up for the day. He went back to his room and pulled his black T-shirt over himself. The shirt had a picture of his family painted on the front, everybody except for baby Cassidy. Next time his grandfather came to visit, he’ll have to ask him to add his little sister to the picture, Carson reminded himself. He reached for a pair of blue trousers and put them on. He then pulled out a pair of socks from his drawer and went down the stairs to put on his shoes. He was ready to go.

Carson pulled his bike from the garage to the sidewalk and mounted it. His friends had already gathered at Clarence’s house across the street. They were