THE GHOST IN THE TOKAIDO INN, by Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler. New York: Puffin Books, 2001, 214 pp., $6.99 (paper).

Other books by same authors:

If people with broad tastes in reading are described as "omnivorous," I wonder if dyed-in-the-wool fans of murder mysteries, such as yours truly, ought to be referred to as "carnivorous?"

Seriously, though, while one's reading preferences may change over a lifetime, I think good fiction, including mysteries, serves as a particularly effective counterbalance against the pernicious inroads that video games and other forms of mass culture have been making on children's minds.