Help me find two YA novels featuring crazy animals!

August 13, 2012 9:14 AM

Help me remember the titles of two books I read as a kid. I've Googled extensively and came up empty on both.

#1: Featured a boy who had a pet coatimundi. I read it around 1992, as I became fascinated with coatis as a result and did a 7th grade research paper on them. Sorry, I have no other details on this other than it was a kids/young adult chapter book.

#2: A young adult mystery novel featuring a girl named Adele who went to live with her father (in Florida, I think?). She sneaked her Siamese cat into the apartment without him knowing, and hid it in her private bathroom. The apartment building was filled with crazy characters, including a military type who paraded around and wanted to be called General, and an elderly couple who wound up being cat burglars. Adele and her friend solved the mystery of the burglaries and the Siamese cat had kittens at the end.

I loved these books as a kid and now that my niece is around the age that I was when I read them, I'd like to find copies for her. Thanks for your help!

posted by Fuego to grab bag (3 answers total)

#1: "The turquoise toad mystery"? "After thirteen-year-old Ben and his pet coati Frito join a group of archaeologists looking for Indian artifacts in the Arizona desert, they help expose a ring of thieves."
posted by MonkeyToes at 9:19 AM on August 13, 2012

The Incredible Cat Caper? (character is not named Adele, though)
posted by jenny76 at 9:48 AM on August 13, 2012

Yes, those are both of them! I could have sworn that the main character in The Incredible Cat Caper was Adele...but maybe it was her best friend's name instead. Thanks to both of you for the quick answers! Years of Googling and you guys had it in minutes...
posted by Fuego at 10:38 AM on August 13, 2012