Review: The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Lee Stewart

To me, this just goes to show that just because an author publishes an adult novel that I don't enjoy doesn't mean that I shouldn't give their children's works a try! If I had written off Trenton Lee Stewart after I read and didn't like 'Flood Summer', I never would have found The Mysterious Benedict Society, which is one of my new favorite-favorite children's books.

TMBS is the story of Reynie, Kate, Constance, and Sticky, four children among hundreds who answered a mysterious ad in the newspaper looking for 'gifted children interested in special opportunities'. Each of the children has a particular skill, such as a photographic memory or extreme resourcefulness, that sets them apart from others, in addition to one important, fateful fact; each of them is currently without parental involvement. These facts allow them to be accepted into Mr. Benedict's 'society', as child spies working to infultrate the evil Mr. Curtain's so-called Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened and destroy his Machine, a device with which he is planning on taking over the world using subliminal messages recorded by children at the school. The four aptly-named children must solve riddles, overcome henchmen, and 'Inspector-Gadget' their way through a series of obstacles that are both thrilling and entertaining.

I love this book. I love the writing, I love the characters, and, most of all, I love being able to play along on the adventure. I read this with my daughter, and we immediately read the second installment. The third will be out in the fall, and we will be first in line to get it.

Rating: Five stars. Definitely read this, and if you have kids who are old enough for chapter books, read it with them.