Eleventh Hour

Eleventh Hour
by Graeme Base

Eleventh Hour
List Price: $12.95
Our Price: $6.96
You Save: $5.99 (46%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.51 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


(Click here)
Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Graeme Base
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1993-09-20
ISBN: 0810932652
Number of pages: 32
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Publisher: Harry N. Abrams

Book Reviews of Eleventh Hour

Book Review: A book for all ages
Summary: 5 Stars

Yes, it's a book with easy words and big pictures of animals in costumes going to a birthday party. In that respect, it's a children's book. But the depth of the mystery and clues are beyond the reach of most 4-year-olds (and many adults, for that matter).

My own life is a good example. I got this book for Christmas forever ago and loved the pictures, but as I grew older I began to appreciate the intricacy of the clues, and as such still pick it up well into my twenties.

Yes, it's possible that your toddlers may get frustrated by the mystery being over their heads. But don't let them cheat and look up the answers (given in a special sealed section in the back, along with all the clues hidden in the illustrations); instead, let them figure it out - it serves as a great learning and perception tool.

Summary of Eleventh Hour

When Horace turns 11, he celebrates in grand style by inviting his friends to a splendid party. When the time comes for the birthday banquet, a most curious mystery will be revealed. Base has hidden messages that will keep sleuths searching happily for hours for the answer to the mystery. Full color.
Reading The Eleventh Hour is like running a marathon: one finishes exhausted but satisfied. Graeme Base, creator of the popular Animalia, has crafted another intricately wrought, gorgeously illustrated picture book, this time a mystery in verse. When Horace the Elephant decides to throw himself a party for his 11th birthday, he never suspects a crime will be committed by lunchtime. Who has stolen the birthday feast? As with any good mystery, everyone is guilty until proven innocent. The proof lies in the myriad clues embedded in each glorious illustration. Young sleuths will delight in decoding the complex messages that pop up in unexpected places.

Graeme Base used the buildings he saw during his travels through Africa, Asia, and Europe to design and decorate Horace's fantastic house. Astute readers may recognize Roman cathedrals, Scottish palaces, and stone carvings from India. Best of all, secreted in these walls are cryptic messages in Egyptian hieroglyphics, anagrams, and even Morse code to challenge the perceptive and deductive abilities of any reader "of tender years or long in tooth." The Eleventh Hour is a brilliant, rigorous, creative romp that no child (or adult) should miss. (All Ages)

Staff Favorites Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Brilliant Puzzle Books
Mazescapes ImageMazescapes
by Roxie Munro
Chronicle Books; Published: 2005-02-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.99
Price in other shops: $6.95
Great Double Maze Book ImageGreat Double Maze Book
by Charles Snape, Juliet Snape
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 1995-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.95
Price in other shops: $12.95
Marvelous Mazes ImageMarvelous Mazes
by Charles Snape, Juliet Snape
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 1994-07-22; Paperback; Book
Best price: $35.64
Classic Tales Maze Book ImageClassic Tales Maze Book
by Juliet Snape, Charles Snape
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 1997-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.91
Price in other shops: $12.95
Classic Mysteries: A Collection of Mind-Bending Masterpieces (Lowell House Classics) ImageClassic Mysteries: A Collection of Mind-Bending Masterpieces (Lowell House Classics)
Barnes & Noble Books-Imports; Published: 1996-04; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.25
Price in other shops: $5.95
Clue Mysteries: 15 Whodunits To Solve In Minutes ImageClue Mysteries: 15 Whodunits To Solve In Minutes
by Vicki Cameron
Running Press; Published: 2003-03-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.49
Price in other shops: $9.95
The Crimebusters Investigate (Puzzle Adventure Series) ImageThe Crimebusters Investigate (Puzzle Adventure Series)
by Mark Fowler
E.D.C. Publishing; Published: 1997-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.75
Price in other shops: $5.95
Codename Quicksilver: Advanced Level (Usborne Puzzle Adventures Series) ImageCodename Quicksilver: Advanced Level (Usborne Puzzle Adventures Series)
by Sarah Dixon
E.D.C. Publishing; Published: 1991-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.03
Famous Journeys ImageFamous Journeys
by Anna Nilsen
Little Hare Books; Published: 2008-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.56
Price in other shops: $6.95
Something Is Not Quite Right: A Find-The-Mistake Picture Book ImageSomething Is Not Quite Right: A Find-The-Mistake Picture Book
by Ralf Butschkow
Kane/Miller Book Pub; Published: 2003-01-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $0.25
Price in other shops: $13.95
Similar Books and other products
The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles 30th Anniversary Edition ImageThe Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles 30th Anniversary Edition
by Julie Andrews Edwards
HarperTrophy; Published: 1989-10-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.79
Price in other shops: $6.99
My Grandma Lived in Gooligulch ImageMy Grandma Lived in Gooligulch
by Graeme Base
Published: 1990-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $26.96
The Water Hole ImageThe Water Hole
by Graeme Base
Puffin; Published: 2004-09-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.56
Price in other shops: $8.99
Enigma: A Magical Mystery ImageEnigma: A Magical Mystery
by Graeme Base
Abrams Books for Young Readers; Published: 2008-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.93
Price in other shops: $19.95
The Discovery of Dragons: New Research Revealed ImageThe Discovery of Dragons: New Research Revealed
by Graeme Base
Abrams Books for Young Readers; Published: 2007-06-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.92
Price in other shops: $19.95
Jungle Drums ImageJungle Drums
by Graeme Base
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 2004-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.58
Price in other shops: $18.95
Uno's Garden ImageUno's Garden
by Graeme Base
Abrams Books for Young Readers; Published: 2006-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.49
Price in other shops: $19.95
The Sign of the Seahorse: A Tale of Greed and High Adventure in Two Acts (Picture Puffin) ImageThe Sign of the Seahorse: A Tale of Greed and High Adventure in Two Acts (Picture Puffin)
by Graeme Base
Puffin; Published: 1998-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $4.92
Price in other shops: $8.99
The Water Hole ImageThe Water Hole
by Graeme Base
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 2001-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.94
Price in other shops: $19.95
Animalia ImageAnimalia
by Graeme Base
Harry N. Abrams; Published: 1987-09-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.98
Price in other shops: $19.95
Book store. Illustrated catalog of books on different categories