Chasing Vermeer is a 2004 children's art mystery novel written by Blue Balliett and illustrated by Brett Helquist.

After a famous Johannes Vermeer painting, A Lady Writing, is stolen en route to the Art Institute of Chicago, Calder and Petra work together to try to recover it.

[4] She compared writing the book to weaving, as she first wrote mainly about art, but then incorporated the pentominoes and classroom scenes, creating many different levels to read on.

"[7] Balliett felt that she could capture the attention of reluctant readers if they related to characters who enjoyed writing and math.

[8] Calder and Petra's teacher, Ms. Hussey, was inspired by an old name on Nantucket Island and the old-fashioned word hussy.

[2] She chose the setting of Hyde Park, Chicago, where she currently lives, because she considered it full of secrets that children could discover.

One day after school, Calder follows Petra to Powell's Bookstore, and the pair run into each other, beginning their unusual friendship.

Calder visits Mrs. Sharpe and notices she has a copy of the picture from his geography box, The Geographer by Johannes Vermeer.

On exiting the school, the thief begins chasing them, and Calder stays behind, urging Petra to run on with the painting.

Amid these events, Calder's friend, Tommy Segovia, writes that his stepfather has abandoned the family in New York, where they recently moved.

"[11] Balliett says her "central message" is "kids are powerful thinkers, and their ideas are valuable, and that adults don't have all the answers.

"[12] A book by Rita Soltan entitled Reading Raps: A Book Club Guide for Librarians, Kids, and Families analyzed Chasing Vermeer's themes as follows: Deception and problem-solving are central themes in this novel as both the thief and the central adult players use a variety of ways to hide the truth while the children employ a series of mathematical and problem-solving concepts to piece together the clues to the puzzle.

Sondra Eklund, who writes a book review blog, noted that the reader was left with the impression to study Vermeer's paintings and art more closely.

[15] During Chasing Vermeer, Charles Fort's book, Lo!, inspires the children to list and pay attention to coincidences as they realize that they are more than what they seem[14] and explore the concept that they make up one unexplained pattern.

[citation needed] Balliett stated that she wanted to convey how coincidences were noticeable and felt meaningful, and how they could matter even if they were unexplainable.

AudioFile magazine praised Reilly's voices and pace, but noted that, "Once the mystery is solved, however, the ending seems tacked on, falling flat.

"[20] Children's Literature reviewer Claudia Mills gave generally positive comments, calling the novel "engrossing and engaging".

"[15] A reviewer of The Trades website called it "an entertaining read that manages to serve several purposes in one concise novel" and found the characters "unusual yet likable", but felt that "the disappointing bit of this novel is that the solutions always arrive through a series of disconnected events that just lead the kids to think in certain ways.