Reviews

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Only show reviews with written explanations

kararkoehn's review

3.75

Oh how delightful. Just enough plot twists to make it invigorating.

Constance was two??? That literally made me laugh.

The only reason it didn’t get more stars was because the riddles and such from the main land seemed incredibly easy and not very riddle-ish. And I couldn’t figure out how Mr B seemed to know so much. Like, he’s just a human, or what?

Other than that, the book was fantastic.

waxflowers's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This was one of my favorite books when I was younger and the show is an incredible adaptation! It's a spy book involving orphans who are great at problem solving in different ways, and you can try to figure out the solutions alongside the characters! But its definitely a novel and not a puzzle book. I need to reread this sometime soon.

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danelleeb's review against another edition

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3.0

Reynard Muldoon, a very bright orphan, decides to take a test that he saw advertised in the newspaper: "Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?" When Reynie goes to take the test, he sees that many other children were attracted by the ad. But, of all the boys and girls there, only two boys and two girls pass and the reward for passing is actually a challenge - the four children must go on a secret mission to infiltrate an evil genius's plan to take over the world. These four children, 'The Mysterious Benedict Society', must work together to pass the most difficult test of all.

Are you familiar with the works of [a:Roald Dahl|4273|Roald Dahl|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1311554908p2/4273.jpg]? If you are, you will recognize aspects of The Mysterious Benedict Society that are really quite Dahl-ish. That's not a bad thing. And when you think of children's lit that's elementary - middle grades-ish, it's really a good thing.

Unlike Dahl though, the book is really, really long. It was a slow read in the beginning and I struggled with keeping my attention on it. Luckily the last 200 pages really picked up and made up for that.

Overall, it's a great read - maybe better for that upper-elementary reader (just due to its length & its slow plot progress). Trying to solve the mind puzzles alongside the kids in the book is an added bonus for this series.

mrs_faith_owens's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The Mysterious Benedict Society is like The Series of Unfortunate Events and Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library all rolled into one, and while I, as an adult, really enjoyed it, I imagine children would love it even more. It is over 450 pages of good, clean adventure. No excessive violence. No love stories to hinder the plot. No bad language. Just four very smart children trying to save the world, and in doing so, they learn some very powerful lessons about being unique, being strong, and being loved.

Even though there's no EXCESSIVE violence, no adventure would be complete without a few harrowing fight scenes and close calls. There is one attempted kidnapping of the children early on, where they narrowly escape, and a few chapters later, you read about how one of the adults lost his memory in what reads like a kidnapping to the Institute. One major plot point is the children having to cheat their way through classes, although it's framed as generally the wrong thing to do. Finally, after several more close calls, Kate winds up needing to fight off two adults and a teenager and gets beaten up pretty badly in the process.

This book would be a great read for any 4-6 grader who loves adventure and mystery, but it would resonate especially well with kids who feel different or unaccepted. It does an exceptional job of showing how everyone needs people who are different because those differences are what make us stronger and thaf your family are the ones who love you no matter what, whether those people are related by blood or not. This would also be a good choice to read aloud to your children, as the words aren't overly difficult, and it generally flows really well.

There were several things that earned this book brownie points with me, not least of which is the name S. Q. Pedalian (a play on the word sesquipedalian). I also really appreciated the illustrations at the top of each chapter. They were quirky and somewhat whimsical. Finally, and possibly most importantly, even though this is only book one in the series, it did not - and I mean DID NOT - end on a cliffhanger!

Content Warnings