The Catnapping Mystery

Table of Contents

 

 

“Good morning,” Molly said. “We’re looking for something to do.”

“Something exciting,” Mrs. Jansen added.

“Good morning,” the young man said. “My name is Michael. Let’s see what I can find for you.”

Michael turned and took a folder from the rack. “How about going up in a hot air balloon?”

Mr. Jansen looked at the folder and said, “These balloons go pretty high up. How about something less exciting?”

Mrs. Jansen looked at the folder and added, “And less expensive.”

“Excuse me. Excuse me,” an old woman said. She pushed ahead of Aunt Molly. She put her hands on the desk. “Excuse me,” she said again.

“You’re next,” Michael told her.

The woman was very upset.

“I can’t wait to be next,” she said. “It’s Little Tiger! It’s Little Tiger! I’m sure something terrible has happened to my Little Tiger.”

#1
Cam Jansen
and the Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds
#2 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the U.F.O.
#3 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Dinosaur Bones
#4 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Television Dog
#5 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Gold Coins
#6 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Babe Ruth Baseball
#7
Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Circus Clown
#8
Cam Jansen
and the Mystery of the Monster Movie
#9 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Carnival Prize
#10 Cam Jansen and the Mystery at the Monkey House
#11 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of the Stolen Corn Popper
#12 Cam Jansen and the Mystery of Flight 54
#13 Cam Jansen and the Mystery at the Haunted House
#14 Cam Jansen and the Chocolate Fudge Mystery
#15 Cam Jansen and the Triceratops Pops Mystery
#16 Cam Jansen and the Ghostly Mystery
#17 Cam Jansen and the Scary Snake Mystery
#18 Cam Jansen and the Catnapping Mystery
#19 Cam Jansen and the Barking Treasure Mystery
#20 Cam Jansen and the Birthday Mystery
#21 Cam Jansen and the School Play Mystery
#22 Cam Jansen and the First Day of School Mystery
#23 Cam Jansen and the Tennis Trophy Mystery
#24 Cam Jansen and the Snowy Day Mystery

 

 

 

DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE YOUNG CAM JANSEN
SERIES FOR YOUNGER READERS!

PUFFIN BOOKS
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Young Readers Group, 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
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(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
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(a division of Penguin Books Ltd)
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division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd)
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Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Registered Offices: Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England

First published in the United States of America by Viking,
a member of Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers, 1998
Published by Puffin Books, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, 2000, 2005

Text copyright © David A. Adler, 1998 Illustrations copyright © Susanna Natti, 1998

All rights reserved

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HAS CATALOGED THE VIKING EDITION AS FOLLOWS:
Adler, David A.
Cam Jansen and the catnapping mystery / David A. Adler ; illustrated by Susanna Natti.
p. cm.—(A Cam Jansen adventure ; 18)
Summary: While visiting Aunt Molly at a fancy downtown hotel, Cam uses her
photographic memory to help one of the guests find her stolen luggage and
pet cat, and to catch the thief.

eISBN : 978-1-101-07603-3

[1. Robbers and outlaws—Fiction. 2. Hotels, motels, etc.—Fiction. 3. Mystery and detective stories.]

I. Natti, Susanna, ill. II. Title. III. Series: Adler, David A. Cam Jansen adventure;18.
PZ7.A26I-5Cam 1998
[Fic]—dc21
97-50544 CIP AC

 

 

 

RL: 1.9

“Y
uma,” Cam Jansen said. “It’s a city in Arizona.”

“Yuma ends with an
a,”
Cam’s friend Eric Shelton said. “Now I have to name a place that begins with an
a.”

Cam and Eric were walking through a busy city street with Cam’s parents. They were on their way to meet Cam’s Aunt Molly. While they walked, Cam and Eric were playing Geography.

“Atlanta,” Eric said. “That’s a city, too. It’s in Georgia.” Eric smiled. “Atlanta ends with an
a.
It’s our sixth a. I’ll bet you’re stuck.”

Cam closed her eyes and said,
“Click.”
Cam always says,
“Click”
when she wants to remember something.

“Wait! Wait!” an old man called to his dog, which tugged at its leash. But the dog ran ahead.

The dog ran alongside Cam.

“Stop! Stop!” the old man called.

The dog stopped. It turned and looked at the old man. Then it turned and ran around Cam. The dog’s leash wrapped around her. And the old man bumped into her.

Cam opened her eyes.

“It was my fault,” the old man said. He unwrapped the dog’s leash. “And Oliver’s fault. We’re both sorry.”

Ruff ruff!
the dog barked, and ran ahead.

“Wait, Oliver! Wait!” the old man called to the dog. But the dog didn’t wait, and the old man had to run to keep up with him.

“Stop playing with dogs,” Mr. Jansen told Cam.

“Dad,” Cam said and smiled. “You know I’m not playing with dogs. I’m playing Geography and I need an
a.
”

Cam closed her eyes again and said,
“Click.”

Then she said to Eric, “I’m not stuck. I know lots of places beginning with the letter a. There’s Alaska, Arkansas, Ann Arbor, Altoona, Albany, Alton, Allentown, and Akron.”

Cam smiled. “I have a picture in my head of a map of the United States. I’m looking at it.”

Cam rubbed her chin and said, “Akron. It’s a big city in Ohio. Now you have to name a place that begins with an
n.”

Cam has what people call a “photographic memory.” It’s as if she has a camera in her head and pictures of just about everything she has seen. Cam says
“Click”
when she wants to remember something. She says it’s the sound her mental camera makes.

Cam’s real name is Jennifer, but when people found out about her amazing memory, they began calling her “The Camera.” Soon “The Camera” was shortened to “Cam.”

Cam’s eyes were still closed.

A woman wearing a purple hat with a large brim, and carrying a large bundle, bumped into her. “Excuse me,” the woman said, as she walked past.

“Please, open your eyes and look where you’re going,” Mrs. Jansen said to Cam.

Cam opened her eyes.

“This city is so exciting,” Mrs. Jansen said. “Please keep your eyes open and look at the tall buildings and all the people rushing around.”

Cam looked up. She saw a few pigeons resting on a high ledge. She also saw a helicopter landing on the flat roof of a tall building.

“Please help me find the Royal Hotel,” her father said. “I think it’s on the next block.”

“Yes! Look!” Mrs. Jansen said, and pointed. “We must be near the hotel. There’s a bellhop.”

Cam and Eric looked across the street. A man in a blue uniform with gold trim was pushing a cart loaded with luggage.

The traffic light turned to red. Cam, Eric, and Cam’s parents waited at the corner for the traffic light to change again. While they waited, they watched the bellhop put the luggage into a green van.