Four exceptional children:
Sticky Washington, the boy with a glue-like memory.
Kate the Great Weatherall, or The Great Kate Weather Machine as she would prefer to be called.
Reynie Muldoon, the leader with a knack for figuring out puzzles.
Cranky Constance whose salient talent is that of finding the negative in everything and telling everybody about it, loudly and sometimes in verse.

Their Mission: To save the world, of course.

Their Enemy: Ledroptha Curtain, arch-villain whose goal is control of the world and whose methods are almost impossible to resist.

Their Friends: Mr. Benedict, Mysterious Milligan, Rhonda Kazembe, and Pencil Woman Number Two.

Can four children infiltrate the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened (L.I.V.E.), find out what Mr. Curtain is doing, how he is doing it, and how to stop him before he takes over the world?

I loved this book. It reminded me first of last year’s Kiki Strike —without the feminist agenda. In The Mysterious Benedict Society, just in Kiki Strike, four children form a team to fight evil, each has his own special abilities, and the adventure never quits. But in Benedict the children are two boys and two girls, and there’s never any hint of boys against girls or that obnoxious phrase “girl power.”

I think, for Harry Potter fans, there are some HP echoes, too, although I can’t be sure since I’m the only reader in North America who hasn’t read Harry Potter. (Constance and I share a stubborn streak.) Anyway, the idea of an elite group of children with special abilities who are tasked with learning to use their talents and finding a way to save the world seems to me to be straight out of the HP world.

Other themes in the books include: facing fear, finding and cherishing family, and teamwork. Each of these motifs is played out in the course of an adventure that keeps the reader turning the pages to see what will happen next. The Mysterious Benedict Society is Mr. Stewart’s first novel for children, and it’s a corker. I can hardly wait to read more books by this author.

Oh, and Computer Guru Son, who is a Decemberists (musical group) fan, immediately recognized the cover art as the work of Carson Ellis who also does the album cover art for the Decembrists. Here’s an interview with Ms. Ellis, if you’re interested.

Two more things you’ll understand only if you’ve already read the book: I really liked the revelation about Connie at the end of the book, and I didn’t guess it at all. And did anyone else have the brains and the time to figure out the riddle at the end of the book concerning Mr. Benedict’s first name? I must be dense because I still have no idea.

Oh, I also liked the fact that the book actually ends. The author may have left some room for a sequel, but in our mania for sequels and series we’ve gone way overboard, IMHO. I’m sort of tired of the book that never ends but only promises to do so possibly at some time in the future, and this one was a satisfying change. Nice ending, and I’m game for a possible sequel with some of the same characters or for something completely different from Mr. Stewart next time around.

The Curiosity Chronicle: An Interview With Trenton Lee Stewart.

Other reviews:

Renee’s Book of the Day: “I did enjoy the book a lot and definitely believe that ten- or eleven- year olds would drink this book right up. It’s full of puzzles, intrigue, evil plots, bullies, sinister institutions, action, humor, and warmth.”

Jen Robinson’s Book Page: “I would have adored this book when I was 10 or 11. The Mysterious Benedict Society is a sure winner for middle grade readers, boy and girls, especially if they like puzzles, or reading about mystery and adventure.”

N.D. (Nathan David) Wilson, the author of this adventure story, is the son of pastor Douglas Wilson. I read some of the younger Wilson’s satirical writing in Credenda/Agenda a long time ago, and I realized then that both Mr. Wilsons had a wicked sense of humor. This satirical streak shows itself in Leepike Ridge infrequently, but still appears at times.

I really liked the following exchange, so very representative of the conversations that take place every day between practical, reasonable husbands and totally frustrated wives. In this case, Elizabeth’s son, Tom, is missing, and her male friend, Jeffrey, has been called in to help find Tom:

“So,” Jeffrey said, “where do you want me to look?”
Elizabeth sighed. She was trying very hard not to yell. Jeffrey had come when she’d called, and he’d nodded while she’d described her early morning search along the stream and up the hill behind the house. But he had yet to look anywhere himself.
“You’re a guy, you tell me,” Elizabeth said. “Where would you have gone?”
“I hid in the basement once. But you don’t have a basement, do you?”
“No, Jeffrey, we don’t,” she said. “The house is on a rock. Most people don’t bother digging a basement into solid rock.”
Jeffrey stared out over the small valley floor with its stream and willows. And then he looked at the ridge on the other side and up at the ridge on the other side and up at the ridge behind the house with its small peak.
“Any more ideas?” Jeffrey asked.
“Jeffrey, why don’t you just start looking? I’ve already looked everywhere I could think of.”
“I think its important that we do this rationally.”
Elizabeth shut her eyes and took a long breath. “Jeffrey.”
Jeffrey reised her hands. “No, hear me out. I have an idea. Let’s walk through a number of theoretical options before we make an applied search..”
“Jeffrey,” Elizabeth said, standing up.
“Yes?”
“Let me know when you’ve figured it out. I’m going to follow the stream.” Elizabeth was already walking down the stairs.
“Do you want me to call the police or local radio stations or anything?”
“Wait till I get back.”
“What should I do?” Jeffrey asked.
“The laundry,” Elizabeth said.
Jeffrey watched her tromp through the tall grass toward the stream, and then he got up and went inside. He couldn’t find any laundry.

Wonderful. I had my two oldest daughters read that passage, and they both laughed appreciatively. I had Computer Guru Son read it, and he looked at me and said, “So? What?” Now you know why Leepike Ridge will appeal to moms and teachers. I don’t know how Mr. Wilson managed to Get It, but he obviously does.

This take-off on Tom Sawyer, Robinson Crusoe, and The Odyssey should also appeal to boys especially. It has caves, tunnels, hidden treasure, wild water rafting, and wilderness (sort of) survival. There are bad guys, good guys, dead guys, blood, raw food, and near-dismemberment. What more could a boy want in a book? Girls, too. After all, we girls can Get guy stuff, too.

The pacing is good, and although I had a little trouble believing that the foam insert from a refrigerator box would last through the kind of trip that Mr. Wilson describes in the novel, I was willing to suspend disbelief. After all what do I know about it? I’ve never ridden any kind of raft downstream. Some of the other events and circumstances in the book can only be described as inventive and imaginative. A house chained to the top of an enormous rock? A sarcophagus in a cave? In Idaho? Trust me, as strange as it sounds, it all works. At least it did for me. I’m going to read this one out loud to my son. I think we’ll have a great time with it.

Leepike Ridge, by the way, has been nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction.

More reviews of Leepike Ridge:

From Kathy of Homeschool Buzz.

From Miss Erin.

From Shelf Elf.

This book is about Evan. He is in the fourth grade this year and guess what? His sister, Jessie is too! You see, she always had been smarter than him. And she skipped a grade, because of that! He screamed and yelled, and I quote, “I hate you!”! He had always wanted an I-pod, but never had the money to get one. So he, as he and his sister always did when he wasn’t mad at her, made a lemonade stand! But the bad thing is, that so did his sister! Later that day they challenged each other to a…

This is when two or more people make two or more lemonade stands to make money with. Whoever makes a hundred dollars by the end of summer (that was five days from then), wins and takes all the money that the other made, too! If neither of them makes $100.00, then who ever has the most, wins! But remember, it has to be made from lemonade stands! Jessie’s motivation is she wants to get her old big brother back; Evan’s motivation… hmm… he just wants to prove that he is smarter than his sister!

This book is not only a good reading book, but it also gives some good ideas for your own lemonade stand. On the last page, they have “Ten Tips For Turning Lemons Into Loot!”, that is, a bunch of business ideas for making a successful stand! I really liked this book and I hope that you do to! So get it at a library and read it!

The thing about Georgie Bishop is: he’s a dwarf. Well, that’s one thing about Georgie. The point of the book is that there’s a lot more to Georgie than just his being a dwarf, even though that’s definitely part of who he is. Georgie is also a dog walker, an actor, a song writer, Andy’s best friend, and he’s about to become a big brother.

If I were pairing books, something I have a tendency to do, I would pair this first novel by NYC author Lisa Graff with The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies, a book I wrote about a few days ago. Both books feature a fight between best friends and business partners, sibling ribalry, and an emphasis on capitalizing on your own gifts and talents. Add a good plot and interesting characters in both books and just the right tone and vocabulary for upper elementary grade readers, and you have a couple of winning stories.

I liked the little notes at the beginning of chapters in The Thing About Georgie about what Georgie can and can’t do. I liked the surprise at the end of the book when it’s revealed just who is narrating at least part of the story. I liked the fact that Georgie’s parents are involved in the story and in his life, unusual for children’s fiction. (I suppose it’s easier to get rid of the adults and just write about kids) I also liked Georgie, a normal kid, who still knows that he has special challenges and is determined to just get on with it.

One part of the book was a little odd. Georgie’s friend’s grandmother, who speaks only Italian, takes Georgie and another kid out into the country, and they get lost. I was never sure where the grandmother thought she was driving them in the first place, nor why an Italian grandmother who spoke no English would have a driver’s license. Or maybe she didn’t have one. Anyway, that section was strange, but designed to show that Georgie was resourceful and good at solving problems in spite of his physical limitations.

Lisa Graff has written a fine book for all children who are curious and who are thinking about what it means to grow up. The dwarfism thing, if you’re interested in that, is a bonus.

From Lisa Graff’s website:

Q: Are you a dwarf?
A: Nope

Q: Why did you decide to write about a dwarf?
A: I wanted to write about someone who was different from everyone around him, in an obvious, physical way. Dwarfism is a particularly unsusual condition in that many dwarfs are born to parent of average height, which meant that Georgie would be unique not only within his community but within his family as well.

Lisa Graff’s blog.

Other reviews of The Thing About Georgie:

Shelf Elf

MotherReader

Kelly at Big A little a

What is it about Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller that is so fascinating to children, especially, but also to many adults? I remember being intrigued with the idea of a girl who could neither hear nor see, who was completely cut off from communication with even the members of her own family. I suppose the whole area of communication and perception is compelling since so much of what it means to be human is bound up in the ability to communicate and to make connections with other people. (It’s the same reason that I’m always interested in reading about the lives and experiences of those who are caught in the world of autism.)

Miss Spitfire is the fictionalized story of how Annie Sullivan taught Helen Keller to communicate, to understand words through finger-spelling and then to understand meaning. Annie, whose background with an alcoholic father and a tubercular brother has made her stubborn and resilient if nothing else, needs all her strength and tenacity to teach Helen, a child who has been indulged and babied and taught nothing. When Annie comes to teach her, Helen doesn’t even understand that there is a world of words and ideas to which she has been denied access. The story moves slowly, as Helen’s awakening came slowly, but inexorably toward the climactic scene where Helen finally understands that the motions of her teacher’s fingers in her hand have meaning, that she can ask questions and give answers and relate to others through the magic of words.

The book is based on primary documents, Annie Sullivan’s letters, Helen’s autobiography, a biography of Annie Sulllivan written by a friend three years before her death. Although the author, Sarah Miller, has added thoughts and feelings to the story that are not recorded, the book remains true to the factual events and to the personalities of the two protagonists. Annie Sullivan was a spitfire, and her pupil was a spoiled and wild hellion of a child. The methods that Annie Sullivan used to reach Helen Keller and give her the gift of communication were not exactly violent, but would never be countenanced nowadays. Miss Sullivan’s goal for Helen was first obedience so that she could then begin to learn, and since teacher and student could not communicate through words or even pictures, the only way to make Helen obedient was to physically force her to behave. As I said, Miss Sullivan’s methods wouldn’t go over too well in our love-means-permissiveness culture.

I think kids might be disturbed by how angry and passionate Annie Sullivan became with her pupil, Helen Keller, but they might also learn that anger can sometimes be channeled and controlled and its energy used to bring about change. The book uses a rich vocabulary, and it isn’t written with slow readers in mind. But for those children, girls especially, who become enthralled with the story of Helen Keller and want to read all there is to read about her, Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller is a fine choice.

Miss Spitfire has been nominated for the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Fiction.

I have read this book, and I think it rocks! It starts out with him (the wimpy kid) saying that it is a journal and that he told his mom not to get one with the word “diary” mentioned anywhere in it. The book is about a boy named Greg Hefley. He loves video games and whenever he is grounded from them he sneaks a game to his friend Rowley’s house and plays it there. I guess that you could call this guy a… how should I put it… well he is very… moronic. Of course, I can’t really say that because he doesn’t do much that would make him a moron and he usually is the one, in his journal of course, calling other people morons. He has a brother named Rodrick. Rodrick has a band called “Loded Diper”. Of course, that isn’t how you spell it, and if you told Rodrick that, it would be news to him! Later in the book, he gets a job as a school paper cartoon writer. He and Rowley were going to use a comic called “Zoo-Wee Mama!”. They gave up on that one and used a comic called “Creightin the Cretin”. This book is very funny, and I hope that everyone else who reads it loves it as much as I did!

Note from Mom: This review was written by ten year old Karate Kid. The management is not responsible for the use of the word “moron” in the review. In fact, I told someone that it is not polite or kind to call anyone a moron or a cretin, even a fictional character.