Anonymous letters begin to arrive at several well-chosen residences. A valuable Vermeer is stolen. "Pentominoes" seem to provide the clues to the puzzle. A beloved teacher may be implicated. Petra and Calder, an unlikely team, set about to solve the mystery of how all of these things may be connected. Suddenly time is short, as the thief may be about to destroy this priceless work of art! 300 pages Ages 9-12
- Mystery
- Chasing Vermeer
Chasing Vermeer
HotPublished |
Updated
Book Information
Reader Personality Type
Author
Illustrator
Publisher
- Scholastic 2004
Year Published
- 2004
Keywords
- art
- boys/girls books for girls books for boys
- geometric shapes
- geometry
- girls
- If You Liked The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
- logic
- math math fiction
- mystery
- puzzles
- standardized testing
- stealing
- teachers
- teamwork
- Vermeer
- working together
- If You Liked The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
- If You Liked Shakespeare's Secret by Elise Broach
Careful Content
Curriculum
- Mathematics Curriculum
- Mystery
User reviews
(Updated: October 30, 2025)
Rating
3.0
“By the sixth week of sixth grade, Ms. Hussey still wasn’t a disappointment. She had announced on the first day of school that she had no idea what they were going to work on that year, or how.” Who wouldn’t want to be in a class like that? Calder Pillay is one of Ms. Hussey’s students. He loves puzzles and constantly plays with a set of pentominoes he keeps in his pocket. Petra Andalee is a classmate and lives three houses away from Calder, but they have never been friends.
Chasing Vermeer is the story of their growing friendship, as well as a mystery, an adventure, and a puzzle. A missing painting, mysterious letters, an eccentric old lady, and a school project all mesh together to make an incredible story. The secret message hidden in Brett Helquist’s illustrations is an added bonus. Once you begin, you will be as intrigued with solving the mystery as Calder and Petra.
Chasing Vermeer is the story of their growing friendship, as well as a mystery, an adventure, and a puzzle. A missing painting, mysterious letters, an eccentric old lady, and a school project all mesh together to make an incredible story. The secret message hidden in Brett Helquist’s illustrations is an added bonus. Once you begin, you will be as intrigued with solving the mystery as Calder and Petra.
S