Order of Ellen Raskin Books
Ellen Raskin was an American children’s author as well as illustrator. She is best known for her book The Westing Game that won the 1979 Newbery Medal. That book was later named one of the top ten children’s novels of all time by the School Library Journal. She would also have her book Figgs & Phantoms named as a 1975 Newbery Honor Book.
Raskin was born in Wisconsin and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for her college degree in fine art. She would work in New York City as a commercial artist and even designed many dustjackets for books. In a fun trivia note, she did the dustjacket for the Newbery Medal award winner A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle.
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
| The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon | (1971) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Figgs & Phantoms | (1974) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues | (1975) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| The Westing Game | (1978) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| A Murder for Macaroni and Cheese | (2011) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
Publication Order of Picture Books
| Nothing Ever Happens On My Block | (1966) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Spectacles | (1968) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Ghost in a Four-Room Apartment | (1969) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| And It Rained | (1969) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| The world's Greatest Freak Show | (1971) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Franklin Stein | (1972) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Who, Said Sue, Said Whoo? | (1973) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Moe Q. McGlutch, He Smoked Too Much. | (1973) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Moose, Goose and Little Nobody | (1974) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
| Twenty-two Twenty-three | (1976) | Description / Buy at Amazon.com |
If You Like Ellen Raskin Books, You’ll Love…
The Westing Game is one of the best children’s mystery novels of all time. The book sees a strange series of events take place as people gather for the reading of Samuel W. Westing’s will. The dead millionaire was a game lover and he is putting on his greatest game of all right now as he’s chosen a virtual stranger to inherit his vast fortune. This book has a great cast of characters and a rich mystery that is good for both children and adults.
Another good novel by Raskin is The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel). This fun story tells of Mrs. Caroline who sets off to meet her husband Leon. The two haven’t seen each other since the weddding, when she was five and he was seven, and she doesn’t know what to expect. The two head out on a boat and a storm cuts their reunion short when Leon is knocked off the boat and disappears completely. A clue is left behind and Caroline will have to find him again.