I loved Encyclopedia Brown when I was a kid. Hopefully tomoatmeal can write an entire book like the following and give me a reason to keep reading the series as an adult:

tomoatmeal:

With the dead gang members now buried in shallow graves, Encyclopedia Brown turned around and leaned on the shovel, watching me.

“Isn’t this exciting?” he asked.  “Someone really doesn’t want us to find out who stole that old cuckoo clock.”

I couldn’t believe his enthusiasm, but even as he was stabbing our attackers to death, I had caught an unsettling look of glee on the boy detective’s face that had made me wonder.

“Actually, I feel pretty messed up right now,” I said.  “I kind of think we should just lay off this one.”

Encyclopedia Brown laughed and then plopped down next to me.

“But we’re so close!” he said.  “You know if we solve it, that’s twenty-five cents for us.”

“Yeah, that’s really not that much money,” I said.  “You killed those guys.”  My voice was quivering now.  “I just want to go home.”

Staring straight ahead, Encyclopedia suddenly became serious.  “Sometimes I wonder:  Am I doing all of this for the money or is there really some type of deep-rooted lust for blood I’m trying like hell to satisfy?”

(Answer: There really is some type of deep-rooted lust for blood that he’s trying like hell to satisfy.)