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A chance discovery of a mysterious map leads the gang on an adventure following it. Unfortunately, they encounter a scary ghost en route to what they hope will be a treasure. Shaggy's and Scooby's fears are offset when they run for cover in a nearby building, which happens to be a pizzeria.

This book reads very much like an episode of Scooby Doo, which is great if you like the show. The plot is in line with a typical episode in that a supernatural occurrence is later unmasked as a very human action; you can basically hear the cartoon's characters in the dialogue spoken here, such as Shaggy's famous "Like," beginning a sentence; and the illustrations match the original animation quite well.

The down side is that even while this is billed as an early reader, it might be a bit difficult for beginning readers to decipher some of Scooby's misspeak (e.g., "rook" for "look") or the more unusual expressions that the gang are known for using, such as zoinks!" Also, if you read aloud, it can be tricky to try and replicate the right voices for these well-known characters.

This particular title is a disappointing one because I feel the mystery is unnecessarily convoluted and poorly plotted. The book is designed for young children, so the mystery should be kept relatively simple, especially so beginning readers aren't getting completely lost as they try to read on their own.

Despite the plot pitfalls, the children I read this aloud to all enjoyed it. One toddler in particular kept asking to hear it so many times that I eventually told him it was his turn to read it! He happily sat down and turned the pages, talking aloud about pizzas and ghosts as he looked over the illustrations. ( )