Mysteries of Trash and Treasure: The Secret Letters

Ages 8 to 12, Grades 3 to 7

In this page-turning middle grade series by New York Times bestseller Margaret Peterson Haddix, Colin and Nevaeh, whose parents own rival junk-removal businesses, uncover mysteries hidden in attics and basements and discover how trash can become treasure.

When Colin finds a shoebox full of letters hidden in a stranger’s attic, he knows he’s supposed to throw them away. That’s his summer job, getting rid of junk. But Colin wants to rescue the letters—and find out what really happened to best friends Rosemary and Toby way back in the 1970s.Meanwhile, across town, Nevaeh also finds a mysterious letter. But this one reads like a confession to a crime. And Nevaeh knows her father, the “Junk King,” expects her to join the rest of the family in blaming a single suspect: his business rival, Colin’s mom.But that’s not what Nevaeh wants, either.Even as one set of letters bring Colin and Nevaeh together, the one Nevaeh found threatens to tear them apart. Is their new friendship as doomed as Rosemary and Toby’s?Each book in the Mysteries of Trash and Treasure series will examine a different time period in history and make readers think about how we value the stuff we hold on to—and what it is that makes it valuable.

About the Author

Margaret Peterson Haddix has written more than forty books for kids and teens. Her books have been honored with numerous state reader’s choice awards and the International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award, and they’ve been translated into more than twenty languages.