Horton Halfpott

Written by Tom Angleberger

A loosened corset leads to chaos and a missing heirloom. Who's to blame?

5.5/7 Bookroo expert·3.8/5 Goodreads · 2,141 ratings

216 pages· 29,684 words· Est. 4 hour read· 880L

$16.95Save 6%

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Bookroo's summary

When M'Lady Luggertuck loosens her corset, chaos ensues at Smugwick Manor. The Luggertuck Lump, a peculiar family heirloom, vanishes, and suspicion falls on Horton Halfpott, the honest kitchen boy. As rules crumble, a colorful cast of characters emerges, each a potential suspect in this whimsical mystery. Can Horton clear his name and uncover the truth behind the Loosening? Dive into a world of absurdity and intrigue where nothing is as it seems, and every twist brings a new surprise.

From the publisher

Tom Angleberger’s farcical middle-grade mystery begins when M’Lady Luggertuck loosens her corset (it has never been loosened before!), thereby setting off a chain of events in which all the strict rules of Smugwick Manor are abandoned. When, as a result of “the Loosening,” the precious family heirloom, the Luggertuck Lump (quite literally a lump), goes missing, the Luggertucks look for someone to blame. Is it Horton Halfpott, the good-natured but lowly kitchen boy who can’t tell a lie? Or one of the many colorful cast members in this romp of a mystery that combines supreme silliness with a tale of a young hero with heart.

At a glance

Format: Hardcover
Pages: 216
Words: 29,684
Reading age: 8–12
Audience: Middle Grade
Lexile: 880L

Themes & topics

Books about social classes Books about lost and found possessions Books about solving crimes Books about confidence Books about anger

For the grown-ups

The parent guide

What families may want to know

Every family reads differently. These are the concepts our editors noticed in this book — worth seeking out for some readers, worth knowing about for others. The list isn't exhaustive, but it's a spoiler-light head start.

Violence

The cook hit Horton with a spoon for dropping some wood. Horton is told to rewash the silverware or Luther will "have [him] whipped." Pirates kidnapped Bo Peep and make Luther walk the plank into the mire--they thought he died, but they found him alive the next morning.

After the last page

Talk about it together

Ask your child if they know what a protagonist is (the leading character/hero in a story). Ask who the protagonist is in Horton Halfpott and why—what traits does the hero have (e.g. honesty, determination, standing up for what’s right, being a friend)?

What readers & critics say