EXTRA! EXTRA! Exclusive Interview with MISSING FOOD INVESTIGATOR, DETECTIVE WILCOX (and a GIVEAWAY!)

In a prime time blog first, I, Laura Sassi, get the inside scoop on the MFIs from the Number 2 police mouse on the force, Detective Wilcox.  If you haven’t met Detective Wilcox, he’s part of the dynamic detective duo, Wilcox and Griswold, in Robin Newman’s debut children’s book, THE CASE OF THE MISSING CARROT CAKE: A Wilcox & Griswold Mystery, illustrated by Deborah Zemke (Creston Books, Spring 2015).

LET’S GET THIS INTERVIEW ROLLING!

Sassi: Detective Wilcox, let’s start at the beginning. Did you always want to be a Missing Food Investigator?

Detective Wilcox: Very early on I knew I wanted to be cop. When I was a pup, I loved cop shows. I’m pretty sure I watched every cop show that was ever made—Miami Mice, Mousy & Hutch, Mousy Miller, Cagney and Mousy, Mouse Squad. . . . You name it!

Sassi: Did you have any favorites?

Detective Wilcox: N.Y.P.M. Blue, you know, N.Y. Police Mouse Blue, and Claw and Order.

Sassi: On Ed’s farm, the MFIs are mice. Has this presented any enforcement problems?

Detective Wilcox: Bigger animals are always trying to eat us. Is that the sort of thing you’re getting at?

Sassi: Yes, exactly.

Detective Wilcox: All jobs have challenges. When you sign up to be an MFI, you understand the risks. We’re here to protect the public. As you know, our motto is, “Whatever the food, whatever the crime, we make the bad guys do the time.”

Sassi: Speaking of bad guys, there’ve been rumors of corruption in the department.

Detective Wilcox: Well, it happens. Last week Captain Griswold caught a couple of bad eggs eating the evidence. Those MFIs have been placed on restricted duty pending an investigation by Internal Affairs. I can’t comment on specifics.

Sassi: What’s the hard part about being an MFI?

Detective Wilcox: You never know what you’re up against. Sometimes food is lost. Sometimes it’s stolen. Sometimes it runs away. And sometimes it may even hatch.

Sassi: Miss Rabbit’s missing carrot cake has been big news lately.

Detective Wilcox: I can’t go into specifics about an ongoing case. But I’ll give you this. We’re close to apprehending the thief.

Sassi: And what’s going on with Penny, the Egg?

Detective Wilcox: Henrietta Hen’s sweet little Penny has been poached.

Sassi: Poached as in boiled?

Detective Wilcox: No, poached as in stolen. If anyone has any information, please contact the MFI at 1-800-MFI-FOOD.

Sassi: And I gotta ask, what’s your favorite kind of donut?

Detective Wilcox: I get this question all of the time. Cheese donut. Nothing’s better than a cheese donut with a cup of coffee.

Sassi: How do you take your coffee?

Detective Wilcox: Black no sugar, just like the cops on TV.

Sassi: Detective Wilcox, thank you.

Detective Wilcox: My pleasure, ma’am.

© 2015 Deborah Zemke. All rights reserved. This illustration cannot be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information or retrieval systems without permission in writing from its publisher, Creston Books, LLC.

EXTRA!  EXTRA! If you’re in New York on April 30^th, you can meet Detective Wilcox and Captain Griswold at the launch party for The Case of the Missing Carrot Cake at The Corner Bookstore, 1313 Madison Avenue at 93^rd Street, from 6-8 pm. There will be wine, cheese and, of course, LOTS of carrot cake.

Please check out www.robinnewmanbooks.com for other upcoming appearances by Wilcox and Griswold.

About the Author 

Raised in New York and Paris, Robin is a graduate of Bryn Mawr College and the City University of New York School of Law. She’s been a practicing attorney and legal editor, but she prefers to write about witches, mice, pigs, and peacocks.

She is the author of The Case of the Missing Carrot Cake, A Wilcox & Griswold Mystery, illustrated by Deborah Zemke (Creston Books, Spring 2015), about two hardboiled mouse detectives working their beat from a shoebox at the back of Farmer Ed’s barn. They are MFIs, Missing Food Investigators, and on their seminal case, they’re on the hunt for Miss Rabbit’s missing carrot cake. (Note: The names of the animals have been changed to protect the good guys.)

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NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!  If you’d like a chance to win a FREE copy of The Case of the Missing Carrot Cake, A Wilcox & Griswold Mystery, by Robin Newman and illustrated by Deborah Zemke (Creston Books, Spring 2015), please post a comment below. If you’d like to increase your chances of winning, please also tweet about this post on Twitter, share it on Facebook, and reblog it. For each additional “shout out,” an extra piece of paper will be added to the magic sorting hat with your name on it, so be sure to let me know if you send any “shout outs”. (Note: You must be at least 13 to enter.) The contest ends Thursday, 4/30/2015 at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be announced on Friday!