The Creepy Mystery at the Library of Congress

The Mystery
of the
Haunted
Library
Book Three—
The Creepy Mystery at the
LIBRARY OF
CONGRESS
A Carole Marsh Mystery

Copyright 2024 Carole Marsh Longmeyer
All rights reserved
For information about permission to reproduce selections from
this book, write to Let There Be Learning Books, 710 Water
Street, Beaufort, SC 29902.
Book design and illustrations by Lee Barrow
Printed in the United States of America
This book, in any format, in any database of any kind, is still the
protected copyright of Carole Marsh. To protect copyrights, it is
imperative that everyone cease and desist from any form of copying,
scraping, or any other illegal use of copyrighted books. Thank you.
Original illustrations by Lee Barrow of Coconut,
the author’s dog, are the copyrighted property of
Carole Marsh Longmeyer.

Table of Contents
Narrated Non-Fiction: The Library of Congress...................... 14
Chapter 1 - Another Day, Another Library............................... 15
Narrated Non-Fiction: Washington, DC.................................. 23
Chapter 2 - Fight or Flight........................................................ 25
Narrated Non-Fiction: The White House................................ 32
Chapter 3 - X Marks the Spot................................................... 35
Chapter 4 - West Wing, Ho!..................................................... 47
Narrated Non-Fiction: The Oval Office.................................... 53
Chapter 5 - THIS Can’t Be Happening!.................................... 55
Chapter 6 - Fire Drill!................................................................ 59
Narrated Non-Fiction: The National Mall............................... 68
Narrated Non-Fiction: The Washington Monument.............. 69
Chapter 7 - This is Not a Drill!................................................... 71
Narrated Non-Fiction: The U.S. Capitol................................... 74
Chapter 8 - Inside the Capitol................................................... 77
Narrated Non-Fiction: Thomas Jefferson................................ 94
Chapter 9 - Busted!.................................................................... 97
Chapter 10 - “We Can Explain!”.............................................. 107
Chapter 11 - The Boy Speaks.................................................... 113
Chapter 12 - A Speedy Escape................................................. 123
Chapter 13 - All’s Well That Ends Well?................................. 129
Narrated Non-Fiction: Cherry Blossoms................................ 142
Glossary................................................................................... 144
WATCH ME WRITE!..............................................................145
More Carole Marsh Books for Kids!....................................... 146
Questions for Discussion......................................................... 147
About the Author.....................................................................148
Excerpt from THE MYSTERY OF THE
HAUNTED LIBRARY Book Four—
The Narrow Escape at the New York Public Library............. 149

Books in This Series
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book One—
The Trembling Tower Library of Timbuktu
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book Two—
The Eerie Mystery at the Egyptian Library
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book Three—
The Creepy Mystery at the Library of
Congress
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book Four—
The Narrow Escape at the New York Public
Library
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book Five—
The Ghostly Mystery at the British Library
The Mystery of the Haunted Library Book Six—
The Scary Mystery at the Shakespeare
Library

Preface
Since 1979, award-winning author Carole Marsh
has written more than 100 “Real Kids/Real Places”
chapter book mysteries for girls and boys ages
7-14.
In 2023, she had the brilliant idea to create a new
kind of Carole Marsh Real Kids/Real Places
mystery book series: THE MYSTERY OF THE
HAUNTED LIBRARY. “Guess where I got this
idea?” she asks. The answer: “From librarians!”
What librarians told her kids would really love to
read were chapter book mysteries that included a
graphic novel element and also had fun narrative
non-fiction fact components.
The author wrote one book and “it was so much
fun” that she decided to write trilogy, each set at a
different library around the world. That was “so
much fun” that she went on to write six books.
How many will there end up being? “Oh,” the
author says, “there are sooooo many haunted
libraries! The real kids and I may want to visit
them all?!”

Meet the Cast
Neemie
Rabon
Sally

George
Author
Carole Marsh
AKA “Mimi”
Coconut
the rescue pup

This white
dog wants to
go to the
White House!
Look at
all these
buildings for
me to sit on!

12

The Mystery
of the
Haunted
Library
Book Three—
The Creepy Mystery at the
LIBRARY OF
CONGRESS
A Carole Marsh Mystery
13

14

Chapter 1
Another Day, Another Library
WHEN CAROLE MARSH, George, Rabon,
Neemie, and Sally returned from their “Find the
Oldest Book in the World” adventure in Egypt,
their classmates bugged them...
15

16

The kids got so tired of answering such
questions that they finally hid out in the back of
their Spanish Moss School library.
17

The kids were interrupted by their school
librarian, the one with the jar of red herrings on
her desk, cobwebs in her hair, and a plastic spider
behind her ear. “Maybe you just had to be there?”
she said.
Sally sighed. “I guess so,” she moaned. “I
wish they could have been in the Valley of the
Kings and Crocodilopolis and seen the pyramid
light show at night. They they would have known
how magical and wonderful it all was.”
The other kids nodded. They were bored
texting and playing games on their digital devices.
Even Rat Quest was no fun. What they did was
keep staring down the long stacks of books toward
the library entrance.
The librarian said...
18

She’s not coming. Don’t bother looking
for Carole Marsh. She’s probably home
writing or walking her dog Coconut.
But one thing’s for sure, she’s not going
to just pop up and invite you on another
wild and crazy library adventure.
Haven’t you had enough?
19

NOOOOOO, the kids said, but softly. It was
a library after all.
Then suddenly, Sally let out a squeal. The
kids looked and there came Carole Marsh, their
favorite kid’s mystery book author whom they
often called Mimi, with Coconut trotting right
behind her. The librarian looked a bit
disappointed. “Guess I was wrong,” she muttered.
YEESSSSSS!, the kids hollered. The
librarian frowned. The kids hopped up and met
the author halfway and they gave her a group hug.
“Where are we going?!” George asked
hopefully. The kids held their breath.
“I need your HELP!” said Mimi. “Right
away! We are going to Washington, DC! To the
Library of Congress! There is something in great
danger there.”
“A book?” guessed Rabon.
“ALL the books!” Mimi screeched.
“When do we leave?!” asked Neemie.
All of a sudden there was a loud roar of
whipping blades as a helicopter landed on the lawn
just outside the library.
20

21

“In that?” asked Sally, looking a bit green.
“IN THAT!” said the author. And in less
time than it takes to say “It was a dark and stormy
night,” she hustled the four kids outside and a man
in a Secret Service uniform lifted them all,
Coconut, too, into the chopper
and off they sped!
22

23

Let’s go!
24

Chapter 2
Fight or Flight
CAROLE MARSH ASSURED the kids that their
parents had ok’d the trip and would send their
luggage on ahead to the hotel. As usual, the school
librarian had confiscated their digital devices and
locked them in a desk drawer.
Aboard the helicopter, the kids marveled at
their school from above—the sports fields, the
playground, the waterfront town of Beaufort, the
bridge over the river, and all the surrounding
islands and waterways. They tried to ask
questions or talk among themselves, but it was just
too loud. However, soon the co-pilot handed out
headphones to each of them so they could hear the
pilot and talk to each other.
25

Welcome aboard, Spanish Mossers!
It will be a short flight to our nation’s capital.
I’m sure you’ll enjoy seeing the sites from
above. I’ll give you a head’s up when we get
closer. In the meantime, sit back, relax, and
stay buckled for the duration of the flight.
Where are they going now?
How come they always get
to cut school? No fair!
26

Maybe they are just
going to lunch?
It must be urgent for
a helicopter to pick
them up at school?
27

Thank you, Capitan Jeff. I’m so glad
you-know-who agreed to send this
helicopter in a hurry to fetch us to
Washington. It is a bit of an
emergency, although I am not sure
what I can do about The Problem.
No worries. You’ll have all
the help you need. Arson is
a serious crime. You-knowwho
is counting on you.
“That’s what I’m afraid of!” said Mimi.
And then their headphone voices kicked
out, but the kids could talk among themselves.
28

What in the world
is going on?
She didn’t mention
any book;
that’s weird.
And what is Carole
Marsh afraid of and
who is you-know-who?
Are there barf bags
aboard, you guys? I
might have throw-up.
Neemie, George and Rabon all hollered,
“NO THROW UP ALLOWED!”
29

Wow, look how
beau9ful
beau9ful Wow, look how
Washington,
Washington,
DC is from up here!
The
The
cherry
blossoms
cherry
blossoms
are
are
in
in
full
bloom
full
bloom
all
all
around
around
the
Tidal Basin!
30

You
You
can
can
see
see
the
the
White
House!
White
House!
And
And
the U.S.
the U.S.
Capitol!
Capitol!
And I’m
And
sure
I’m
that
sure
liZle
building is a hot dog stand!
that
I hope
hope
the
the
pilot
pilot
goes
goes
around
around
the
the
Washington
Washington
Monument!
31

32

33

34

Chapter 3
X Marks the Spot
OF ALL PLACES, the helicopter pilot set down on
a big white X on the lawn of The White House!
Headphones were collected. The door was opened,
but the chopper rotors never stopped. The co-pilot
helped Mimi down. At the bottom of the stairs,
she turned and gave the captain a quick salute and
a smile. Then the kids came down, holding tight to
the railing, and all were greeted by a Secret Service
agent, black suit, squiggly microphone wire behind
his ear.
“Everyone ok?” Mimi asked the kids as she
herded them in a line behind the Secret Service
agent, who seemed in a big hurry. He frowned at
the white, fluffy dog tucked under Carole Marsh’s
arm.
The kids just nodded. They had been so
mesmerized by the sight of the nation’s capital
from above that they were just speechless. Also,
from landing at the White House of all places. And
now, about to enter the big, white, wedding cakelooking
building.
35

Mimi, I’m so excited I
forgot to throw up!
Thank goodness for
that, Sally. Keep up the
good work!
36

The Secret Service agent escorted them
through a side room into a hallway. As they
waited, Carole Marsh said to the man, “I believe
we have met before?”
He frowned. “Yes, ma’m. I remember you.
When you visited the White House before, you had
way too many questions about secret doors and
tunnels and if you could go through the heat and
air ducts to sneak into the Oval Office. I thought
we were going to have to call a Code Red!”
“Oops!” said Mimi with an innocent smile.
“I used all that research in The White House
Christmas Mystery,” she said proudly.
“Well, you made us very nervous,” the agent
said seriously. He turned and whispered to the
kids, “But it was a good book, hey? My kids loved
it. But could you try to keep an eye out for her?
She could get you all in trouble, what with what’s
going on right now.” He gave them a wink and
handed them off to a pretty lady in yellow suit.
“I’ll take you right in,” she told Carole
Marsh. “Just follow me, please.” She did not take
into account that Mimi, a teacher at heart, was
going to stop every few feet and share some facts
with the kids.
37

Well, this is a
jolly group!
38

I would love to
live here!
39

40

41

42

43

When I’m president,
I will live here!
44

Carole Marsh is
giving my talk,
grrrrrr…
45

46