Who Done It? Hardcover – February 12, 2013

This book was laugh-out-loud funny. The different alibis each author gave were hilarious. Some used poems to plead their innocence, while others used madlibs, illustrations, or wacky stories. The murder victim, Herman Q. Mildew, was a character that was outrageous and easy to imagine. I really enjoyed how even though each author's story was their own, Mildew's character was consistently presented. The downside to having more than 80 authors give an alibi is that after 50 you kind of want to be done. The unique one's didn't get boring, but some were too similar. In the end because of it's fun nature and benefits going to a great cause, I would give Who Done It? 3/5 stars.

I had purchased this book for my teenage grandson but returned it after reading 4 chapters. I decided to read the book before I gave it to him as it sounded like a fun read and I always like to preview what I suggest he read. First I noticed a crude word, then a disgusting phrase, and a descriptive word of a disgusting act. I checked and the book was listed under teenage readers. This is not something I would give my grandson, and frankly I didn't appreciate the crudeness of it myself. If you are not familiar with all the writers and their works you will not get the "inside comments" that each chapter centers around. I looked up some of the authors and their work and none of this was suitable teen reading either. I think the category of teen to YA needs to be divided down more. Although as I alluded to before I don't know what age group would enjoy this book.

I received the book but it was not the final copy and it clearly said not for sale on it.

I seem to be striking out with multi-contributor books of late. " Who Done It?" is no different. Numerous young adult authors (over 80) are asked to write about their whereabouts the night their fictional literary editor is allegedly killed. The stories ranged from amusing to boring to downright weird, and some of the accounts used language unnecessary for young adult readers. My 13 year old son read about 5 alibis in the book and handed it back to me, saying he had no interest in reading anymore. I cannot imagine any teen being so taken with the premise and subject matter to consider this a must-read book. Would a teenage boy really understand why all these authors have such disdain for a book editor? I really don't think understanding the stereotype of a book editor is in the wheelhouse of adolescent boys or girls. There was a lot of "inside humor" among the authors that I am sure they found amusing, but was lost on me and probably most of the YA audience for which this book is intended. Because of the number of authors asked to contribute to the compendium, the book is about 40 authors and 150 pages longer than it needed to be. More in-depth alibis with less authors may have had a better result. I got so bored with the content, that it took me over three months to finish the book. I never felt the need to pick up the book because I did not care how it ended. Repetitive would be the best way to describe the book. And yes, I finally skipped to the end of the book after skimming the last 100 pages, just so I could have closure.The profits from this book go to 826NYC, a non-profit organization that supports kids' creative writing--something I find to be a very noble cause. But I would suggest checking out a copy of this book from your library before you make an investment in it, and write a check to the charity. Your money will go a lot farther in helping the kids and that is really the only reason I can find for buying this book.

The basic premise was interesting and creative! I liked most of the authors and I did giggle at a couple of parts.

What happens when the meanest, nastiest, smelliest editor invites all of his authors to a party at The Old Abandoned Pickle Factory? What happens when he threaten to reveal every one of their deepest, darkest secrets?Well, the editor turns up dead is what happens.And every author and illustrator is a suspect in his murder.Jon Scieszka conducts the investigation as each author provides a brief alibi for the time of Herman Q. Mildew's death in Who Done It? (2013).In addition to being a very entertaining premise, Who Done It? benefits a great cause. This "serial act of criminal literature" benefits 826nyc--a non-profit organization that supports kids' and teens' creative and expository writing.With over 80 contributors suspects, there are a whole lot of alibis to sift through here. I don't recommend reading them all at once as they do tend to blend together. (Though averaging two pages each one is a short read.) The level of continuity between entries is also impressive as authors carry details throughout the collection.There is a lot of fun to be had with this book whether you read it all at once or just peruse it for new and familiar authors.My favorite entry is Patrick Carman's, bar none. But with a variety of formats (David Levithan's is a poem. Sarah Mlynowski and Courtney Sheinmel wrote a screenplay. And Lev Grossman's is a riff on fantasy conventions) and a few choice illustrations, Who Done It? is guaranteed to have something for everyone.

You know you're not enjoying a book when you keep saying to yourself, "Should I give up on this?" Alas, I made it to the end and rather wish I hadn't. The book was clever, with each contributor bringing something new to the table. Unfortunately, though, there are only so many ways to write about the same thing. In my opinion, there were too many authors contributing here, and, while there were funny moments laced throughout the anthology, there was no plot moving anything forward. The multiple (80?) ways of saying the same thing ("I didn't do it!") became tiring at about the 10% mark. Ultimately, this book felt like a huge inside joke that no one bothered to explain to me.

Die Idee ist wunderbar. Gegeben ist eine Rahmensituation, in der ca. 80 Autoren zu einer Versammlung eingeladen werden. Dort werden sie allesamt unter Verdacht gestellt, ihren Lektor ermordet zu haben. Sie müssen alle schriftlich ein Alibi vorlegen, warum sie nicht der Mörder sein können. Der Leser wird aufgefordert, anhand dieser Alibis den wahren Mörder ausfindig zu machen.Mein erster Eindruck war, dass bei 80 Autoren dies eine wahrhaft unlösbare Aufgabe ist. Ich freute mich, durch den leitenden Ermittler an die Hand genommen zu werden und dennoch eigenständig das Rätsel zu lösen.Dies war jedoch nicht der Fall. Stattdessen besteht das Buch aus 80 Alibis, die vollkommen für sich stehen. Und genau dort liegt das Problem. Die Autoren hatten anscheinend keine klaren Vorgaben bekommen. So wird zwar in der Einleitung eine Versammlung beschrieben, dennoch schreibt z.B. eine Autorin, als ob sie zuhause sitzt. Auch sind die Alibis untereinander nicht miteinander zu vereinbaren. Häufig kommt es zu Doppelungen, da die Autoren alle ähnliche Ideen hatten, ihre Unschuld zu beweisen. In diesem Wust aus 80 Statements, die sich alle gleichen, wird schnell klar, dass der Leser gar nicht in der Lage ist, den Mordfall zu lösen.Nicht einmal das Layout ist besonders interessant geraten.Kurz gesagt: Ich kann mich nicht erinnern, jemals so enttäuscht von einem Buch gewesen zu sein.Der einzige Trost der mir bleibt: Ein Teil des Geldes geht an die 827NYC, eine Organisation, die die Kreativität von Schülern in Bezug aufs Schreiben fördert.