Bark Twice for Murder

  • Pages:120
  • Publisher:Orca Book Publishers
  • Series: Orca Currents
  • Themes:murder mystery, organized crime, sidekick, food truck, homelessness
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  • Available:08/19/2025
  • Reading Level:3.0
  • Lexile:HL530L
Paperback
9781459841482
$10.95
Ebook
9781459832282 LICENSE OPTIONS
$8.99

After the death of his parents, Harry keeps busy by making food for the unhoused in his grandmother’s food truck.

That’s how he meets and befriends Stanley, an excellent cook and teacher with only two possessions: a precious recipe binder and a grumpy dog named Waffles. Then Stanley turns up dead, the victim of a grisly murder, and his treasured recipe book is gone. Harry is shocked—who would do such a thing? That is exactly what Waffles wants to find out. Yes, Waffles, the dog that is now talking to Harry and only Harry. Waffles reveals that in his past life he was a detective and Stanley’s friend before he too was murdered and then reincarnated as a dog. Waffles wants to follow the crumbs and piece together Stanley’s murder, but he can’t do it without Harry. Will this souped-up duo be able to take down a heaping serving of criminal characters, or will they be the next dish on the murderer’s menu?

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading-level book for middle grade readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read!

Bark Twice for Murder is a masterfully written, deliciously weird mystery. Despite the outlandish plot, the book is sensitive to issues like homelessness and mental illness. A must-add to any collection.”

– School Library Journal (SLJ)
Junior Library Guild (JLG) Gold Standard Selection   | 2025  |  Commended