The Mysterious Benedict Society (edition 2008)

Characters: Reynard Muldoon
George Washington
Kate Wetherall
Constance Contraire
Ledroptha Curtain
Mr. Benedict
Milligan' Wetherall
Rhonda Kazembe

Setting: A fictional town.

Theme: There are many ways to solve a problem.

Genre: fictional science,

Summary:
This book is about a character named Reynard who is especially inquisitive, intelligent, and clever. The story revolves around a group of orphaned gifted kids who try to stop an antagonist from taking over people’s minds as they try to break free from the orphanage. It involves 4 intelligent kids who are smart in their own way. Their journey involves quizzes, puzzles, and tricks to solve problems and issues. There are many twists and puzzles that keep the reader on their toes. It also involves using teamwork, friendship, and about not giving up.

Audience: Young adults, gifted children, students who are interested in solving problems.

Curriculum ties: science, math, and language-creativity.

Personal response: Personally, I found this book to be very entertaining. It was well written and kept me on my toes. The way that the kids figured out how to solve the problems were very well thought out and made easy to follow with the writing. Being a person who likes science, I found this book to be very engaging and made me stump at times. What makes this book more engaging is that the twists and turns kept me reading and not put it down. The different characters make it a very rounded book, meaning, it used all of the kids’ different talents in order to solve problems. The emphasis in teamwork is what kept helped the kids solve their problems. ( )

4Q 4P.
I will be honest and say that the cover initially drew me in. I then read the back and it sounded very interesting. Wait, its 486 pages! Hats off to the cover artist because I read it anyway. The Mysterious Benedict Society won the Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth Award in 2007, in addition to several others, and is a very engaging story about 4 kids who "have no one" that are recruited to help save the world. A thrilling adventure/ mystery which also touches on many social issues. The characters are quirky and engaging in a professors from Hogwarts kind of way, and the language and settings are strange, complex and fun. If youve read all the A Series of Unfortunate Events and Harry Potter this might be your next series. ( )

A fun mystery, with a group of kids thrown together under unusual circumstances. Has an old-fashioned feel to it, and although the plot is tight, the pace is more relaxed than some. I mean this in a very positive way. Carson Ellis did a lovely job with the illustrations. The contrived names struck a false note with me, but overall it was an enjoyable book. ( )

So Del Roy, who narrated has a great voice. And I enjoyed it. But he has this deep, elderly voice and sorry to say, didn't hold my attention. I also thought at times the story was slowed down by too much description and explanation. Lots of explanations. But overall it was an interesting read. ( )

Quite delightful and clever, in the way of Lemony Snicket (A Series of Unfortunate Events), or the Boxcar Children with a dash of Harry Potter (just a dash - there's no actual magic, just fanciful science, and orphan children in a special school). I very much enjoyed the characters and their different approaches to problem-solving (as well as their different attitudes when faced with challenges - I love Kate's dauntless adventuresomeness). I thought the "reveal" about Constance came a bit too late to appreciate - it was more of a joke than part of the plot - but overall this is a well-written, engaging story.

"I can't say for sure, because I have no experience, but - well, is this what family is like? The feeling that everyone's connected, that with one piece missing the whole thing's broken?" -Reynie in a mental letter to Miss Perumal (255)

"You must remember, family is often born of blood, but it doesn't depend on blood. Nor is it exclusive of friendship. Family members can be your best friends, you know. And best friends, whether or not they are related to you, can be your family." -Mr. Benedict to Reynie (257) ( )