Nate the Great has been asked to help find his friend's parrot. It isn't just any parrot. And time is of the essence--the parrot and others are scheduled to perform at the upcoming 4th of July picnic. Nate the Great, along with his dog Sludge, are on the trail of clues and confident they can solve the case before the big day!
Nate is working two cases at once! A double whammy in more ways than one way!
The annual 4th of July Picnic is two days away and decorations are going up in Deering Oaks Park. As Nate and Sludge stroll along, they run into their friend Pip and his parrot Prattles. Pip explains that he's lost his other parrot--Penelope--a drone that he disguised as a parrot, as a friend for Prattles. Pip plans to sing the Star-Spangled Banner with Prattles and Penelope at the picnic so they don't have much time.
The next day, Claude comes calling and asks Nate if he can help solve a case for him. He explains he's lost Baxter, his drone parrot. A lightbulb goes off in Nate's head--an idea that may very well lead to solving both cases at once.
What happens next is a mix-up of epic proportions, but in the end Nate's smart thinking and problem-solving makes sense of it all. And on picnic day, Pip is able to sing his song with Prattles and Penelope, however a pig called Anastasia manages to somehow steal the show!
Marjorie Weinman Sharmat has written more than 130 books for children and young adults, as well as movie and TV novelizations. Her books have been translated into twenty-four languages. The award-winning Nate the Great series, hailed in Booklist as "groundbreaking," has resulted in Nate's real-world appearances in many New York Times crossword puzzles, sporting a milk mustache in magazines and posters, residing on more than 28 million boxes of Cheerios, and touring the country in musical theater. Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and her husband, Mitchell Sharmat, have also coauthored many books, including titles in both the Nate the Great and the Olivia Sharp series.
Andrew Sharmat is the son of Marjorie Weinman Sharmat and Mitchell Sharmat. Nate the Great and the Wandering Word is his second collaboration with his mother.
Jody Wheeler developed a greater-than-average interest in children's books at an early age, having been influenced and encouraged by her great-aunt Opal Wheeler, a prolific writer of books for young readers in the 1950s. Since being trained as a fine artist and educator, Jody has enjoyed working on projects ranging from picture books to educational texts and magazines, and from greeting cards to coloring books. She divides her time between Manhattan and Ballston Spa, NY.