The first story about Alvin, possessor of the "Magnificent Brain," and "Shoie," his sports-hero pal, is back in print In Alvin's Secret Code, the two twelve-year-olds happen across a peculiar piece of paper in the gutter of a sidewalk. Yes, it's in code, and a tangled adventure begins, enlivened by Alvin's sister Daphne ("The Pest"), younger than he is but often wiser. Readers are not only invited to assist in untangling a century old mystery. They will suddenly find themselves engrossed in mastering the basics of cryptography, a highly useful art for solving and keeping secrets when threatening criminals show up. Join Alvin and Company for fun, mystery and adventure--"with authentic instruction in the art of code making and breaking.