Mr. Karp's Last Glass

Young Randolph has two favorite pastimes -- hockey and collecting. He collects both the ordinary (beer bottle caps) and the esoteric (new words). After his father loses his job, Randolph is horrified to learn the family must take in Mr. Karp, a boarder. Even worse, Mr. Karp is a collector too. He receives large wooden crates marked "Fragile" and "Perishable" and subscribes to a curious newsletter called "The Drip." As it happens, Mr. Karp collects "water" -- he keeps samples in glass containers, each carefully labeled: "Pitcher used by Benito Mussolini to throw water in face of army private during tantrum, 1941." Randolph is astonished to learn there are many other water collectors, with websites, conventions, and a central association that oversees the authenticity of samples. This hobby, Randolph discovers, is so cut-throat that Mr. Karp will do anything to beat out a rival named Mr. Ravelson for a unique sample of melted snow taken from the upturned hat of Napoleon during the Russian Campaign. What will happen if Mr. Karp doesn't get his precious sample? Even Randolph is surprised at the consequences! Fagan's wonderfully whimsical prose and Selcuk Demirel's breezy line drawings make this an unforgettable read.