The Mysterious Disappearance Of Leon (I Mean Noel) (1989) - Plot & Excerpts
“The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel)” is where Raskin first comes into her own as a writer. I would describe it as Daniel Pinkwater-esque, but since Pinkwater didn't really break through until "Lizard Music", published five years after this book, perhaps it would be more accurate to say that Pinkwater's works sometimes have a Raskin-esque feel to them. Like a classic Pinkwater novel, “The Mysterious Disappearance” is funny in an off-kilter way, featuring unusual characters with amusing names (it also has an echo of Pinkwater's pronounced anti-authority tendencies). Unlike Pinkwater, Raskin is at her best as a mystery writer, and as the title suggests there is indeed a mystery here. The novel involves the search of Mrs. Caroline Fish Carillon for Leon (who took to calling himself Noel as a teenager), to whom she was married at the age of 6 as part of a deal that created the soup empire to which she is the heir. Shortly after the marriage, Leon/Noel was packed off to boarding school, and when Mrs. Carillon meets him again for the first time, years later, the boat they are on capsizes and she is left only with the few words she could catch before the current pulled him away (these are referred to as “the glub-blubs”, since they were interrupted in the middle by Noel going under). The remainder of the book consists of Mrs. Carillon’s search for her husband based on those few words, aided (and occasionally hampered) by Tina and Tony, an orphan pair of twins she adopts along the way, a childhood friend, Augie Kunkel, who she meets for the first time in years while accidentally causing a riot in Bloomingdale’s, the family lawyer, who thinks that she’s crazy, and a few other characters. The overall tone of the book is breezy and lighthearted, the characters are fun, and the mystery will keep you guessing, even if it’s not quite as convoluted as that in “The Westing Game”.
To say that I really like Ellen Raskin’s "The Westing Game" is an understatement. I adore that book. So when I got copies of two other Raskin books ("The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel)" and "Figgs and Phantoms") in a giveaway, I had great expectations…and while these other books exhibit her signature style (and illustrations), they are not in the same league.This rather absurdist book begins with two poor families (the Fishes and the Carrillons) that invent a great soup that makes them wealthy…and then decide that their children (Caroline and Leon) must marry to split the profits evenly. The children go their separate ways after this youthful marriage; they meet briefly as adults but Leon disappears. Caroline, who has been made wealthy by the family soup business, spends much of her adulthood engaged in a quixotic search for the elusive Leon. She dresses the same so he will be able to recognize her. Along the way she adopts two sensible children who join her in these efforts because they love her and they kinda have no choice.Each writer creates a world and Raskin creates peculiar ones with lots of clever wordplay where loving families are made up of eccentric characters—some related and some not. Children trying to figure themselves out in these books deal with sometimes immature adults—another hallmark of children’s literature. While there were a few slightly dated and/or not politically correct notions floating through "The Westing Game," Raskin’s earlier books exhibit even more of these themes. And at times the quirkiness and whimsy is a bit much.Read more of my review on my booksploitation blog.
What do You think about The Mysterious Disappearance Of Leon (I Mean Noel) (1989)?
This was very much a children's book, and it was very clever for that. I don't think I would have had any hope of solving the mystery myself. It's actually a lovely, sweet little story with a WIDE melancholy streak. I think that reading a first edition with the author's illustrations actually took away from my appreciation of the book. The illustrations are silly, and they take away from the sense of reality that underlies the romping nature of the story. I think, without the illustrations, I might have given it 4 stars. That said, though, it was clever and sweet and sad and fun, and a good book for kids.
—Sharon
I first read this years ago and although I could not recall any details of the book's plot I remembered it with a certain fondness. I recently tracked it down from the library and had the pleasure of rereading it. To be sure, Raskin's The Westing Game is far more well known; in fact it is used today in many elementary school classrooms. But, I personally prefer this obscure gem of a mystery novel. It is great fun to read. The characters are eccentric and engaging. The twists and turns and bits of clues strewn throughout the book are akin to working on a Sunday New York Times crossword puzzle, deeply addicting and satisfying at the same time. I've no doubt most children would relish the chance to be junior sleuths searching for the elusive Leon (I mean Noel.)
—Sarah
The reprint of Mysterious Disappearance of Leon will be a hit with those that love the Blue Baillet mysteries. Instead of codes, there are word puzzles to solve, all stemming from the garbled declarations of a drowning man.A child-bride, heiress to a soup fortune, seeks her husband fourteen years after they marry; a boating accident in which Leon (oops! Noel) disappears leads to a 20+ year hunt through cities with St. Paul churches, New in their title, Chinese restaurants with won ton soups, seals and other oddities. Mrs. Carillon's quest also includes adopting two non-Siamese twins, Tina and Tony, wearing a purple bathing suit at all times, and a stint in the pest-hole after sort-of inciting a riot in Blookmingales.Eventually, all is solved, people live happily ever after, and readers who like puzzles will have had fun.ARC provided by publisher.
—Laura
