[I recently discovered some unpublished reviews I wrote several years ago. I’m posting these now as they were originally written.]
Summary
Three kids from different schools have a chance to win a $10,000 scholarship. But they are not the kids you would expect to be chosen for a scholarship contest:
- Melissa does homework for other kids for money so she and her little brother can have lunch at school. Her teacher assumes she is copying off of others. Her guidance counselor is convinced Melissa was included by mistake and assumes she will fail spectacularly.
- Bondi is “Mr. Personality,” a guy who uses his people skills to help out kids in need at school and get a class pet elected school president.
- Wilf has smooth moves, able to stealthily steal tardy slips. He’s not much of a go-getter at school or at home.
The scholarship coordinator, Mr. Smith, gives each of the kids a cell phone, a driver, a debit card for expenses, and three clues to solve. The first to correctly solve them wins the $10,000. As the kids work their own angles on the puzzle, though, they start to think there’s more going on than Mr. Smith has explained
Review
This fun, clever story feels like The Westing Game (♥♥♥♥♥). The puzzles are tricky and lead to various Chicago landmarks. There are fun twists that lead the kids to the truth of what’s really going on.
I enjoyed the three kids at the center of this story. I loved Melissa. Her guidance counselor was HORRIBLE. I loved that Melissa excelled beyond whatever pathetic assumptions and expectations her school personnel had for her. Bondi has the healthiest situation. His parents were great, and his situation was pretty normal. I didn’t get as good of a feel for Wilf as the other two. His relationship with his driver and the way Wilf approaches the contest does give some hints to his life.
This is a terrific, smart, and satisfying story! It will appeal to mystery fans as well as readers who enjoy clue and puzzle stories like The Puzzling World of Winston Breen or The Westing Game. This would be a fantastic class read aloud or a book club selection. You can find other reviews of terrific middle grade mystery and puzzle stories, including The Great Pet Heist by this same author, here.
Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*
*♥♥♥♥½ = I loved it! Would re-read.
