It's
Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
at
at
and #IMWAYR day
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October 22, 2024 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus
Becca Solway has her summer all planned; she's going to hang out with Kasie and the popular crowd at the beach, date Tommy, and not think about her parents fighting all the time. Instead, her mother whisks her away from Connecticut to Montana for a month at a spa resort. However, when they arrive, they realize that the booking was not made for the posh Get Away Ranch, with its masseurs and hot tubs, but rather the Far Away Ranch run by Terry, with iffy WiFi and even iffier food. Since it's already been paid for, the two must make do. Becca starts to go into the woods, but is stopped by Jon, whose father works at the ranch, and told she needs boots and Bear spray if she wishes to venture further. Back at the lodge, they see Tad Lochster, the YouTube star who is always posting about extreme adventures, and Becca is concerned that her mother looks at him with some interest. Jon, whose mother has passed away, has encouraged his father to come to the ranch based on the stories his Gram, who has also passed away, told him about Pearhandle Pete back in the last century. Jon thinks if he can find Pete's treasure, it would help his father, who is "buried in sadness". Becca is interested in the story even though she is still embroiled in friend drama between Kasie and her former best friend Ameerah back home, whenever there is WiFi. She also has odd run ins with the unhappy looking but cute Liam, as well as his sister, Finn. Jon and Becca have one clue to work with, and follow it into the mountains, where they narrowly escape a rattlesnake but find a clue in a metal canister with a picture and the word "mica" wedged on a rock ledge. When Becca is talking to Terry about the history of the ranch, she sees a display case with a slab of mica in it, and when she and Jon sneak down and get into the case, they find an envelope under the mineral. Tad knows what they are up to, and is also determined to find the treasure, and since Becca's mother seems to be off on her own without telling Becca what she is doing, Becca suspects her mother might be hanging out with him! When there's a trip to the ghost town of Piney Ridge, the kids are able to follow the clue for a "locked box", but almost get locked into a bank vault. They get a safety deposit box, and are rescued by Tad, but he later tries to steal it from them. There's a bear attack, more ghost sightings by Liam, who has ESP, and a lot of the story that Gram told Jon. When a clue is found in the grandfather clock at the ranch, Jon and Becca manage to arrange a five day family pack trip to find a cave. When Tad follows them, they learn that he might be buying the entire ranch from Terry, who is in financial difficulties, and that the sale might contain the treasure! Will the kids be able to find out secrets about the past and thwart the YouTube star?
Becca Solway has her summer all planned; she's going to hang out with Kasie and the popular crowd at the beach, date Tommy, and not think about her parents fighting all the time. Instead, her mother whisks her away from Connecticut to Montana for a month at a spa resort. However, when they arrive, they realize that the booking was not made for the posh Get Away Ranch, with its masseurs and hot tubs, but rather the Far Away Ranch run by Terry, with iffy WiFi and even iffier food. Since it's already been paid for, the two must make do. Becca starts to go into the woods, but is stopped by Jon, whose father works at the ranch, and told she needs boots and Bear spray if she wishes to venture further. Back at the lodge, they see Tad Lochster, the YouTube star who is always posting about extreme adventures, and Becca is concerned that her mother looks at him with some interest. Jon, whose mother has passed away, has encouraged his father to come to the ranch based on the stories his Gram, who has also passed away, told him about Pearhandle Pete back in the last century. Jon thinks if he can find Pete's treasure, it would help his father, who is "buried in sadness". Becca is interested in the story even though she is still embroiled in friend drama between Kasie and her former best friend Ameerah back home, whenever there is WiFi. She also has odd run ins with the unhappy looking but cute Liam, as well as his sister, Finn. Jon and Becca have one clue to work with, and follow it into the mountains, where they narrowly escape a rattlesnake but find a clue in a metal canister with a picture and the word "mica" wedged on a rock ledge. When Becca is talking to Terry about the history of the ranch, she sees a display case with a slab of mica in it, and when she and Jon sneak down and get into the case, they find an envelope under the mineral. Tad knows what they are up to, and is also determined to find the treasure, and since Becca's mother seems to be off on her own without telling Becca what she is doing, Becca suspects her mother might be hanging out with him! When there's a trip to the ghost town of Piney Ridge, the kids are able to follow the clue for a "locked box", but almost get locked into a bank vault. They get a safety deposit box, and are rescued by Tad, but he later tries to steal it from them. There's a bear attack, more ghost sightings by Liam, who has ESP, and a lot of the story that Gram told Jon. When a clue is found in the grandfather clock at the ranch, Jon and Becca manage to arrange a five day family pack trip to find a cave. When Tad follows them, they learn that he might be buying the entire ranch from Terry, who is in financial difficulties, and that the sale might contain the treasure! Will the kids be able to find out secrets about the past and thwart the YouTube star?
Strengths: Who doesn't want to be able to spend a month at a dude ranch in Montana? Sign me up! Becca makes the most of her visit, and is glad to help out Jon with her knowledge of geology. A treasure hunt would also be a lot of fun, and there was something about Jon and Becca joining forces with Liam and Finn that felt very much like a Donna Parker mystery. There's some old timey history, a sad family story, and various kinds of treasure-- I don't want to spoil too much here! The inclusion of Tad makes this a little more modern, and I rather enjoyed Becca's mom's new diversion and her new lease on life.
Weaknesses: There's a LOT going on here. As popular as friend drama is in middle grade literature, I would have removed that from the book, since the friends are back in Connecticut. Also, ghost towns featured largely in kids fiction from the 1950s-1970s (think about the Brady Bunch's adventure to one), but that was fifty or more years ago. Would there still be a safety deposit box intact? The clues would have had to hang around for well over a hundred years, if not 140. Nobody ever dusted the mica?
Weaknesses: There's a LOT going on here. As popular as friend drama is in middle grade literature, I would have removed that from the book, since the friends are back in Connecticut. Also, ghost towns featured largely in kids fiction from the 1950s-1970s (think about the Brady Bunch's adventure to one), but that was fifty or more years ago. Would there still be a safety deposit box intact? The clues would have had to hang around for well over a hundred years, if not 140. Nobody ever dusted the mica?
What I really think: Despite the Scooby-Doo like villain (Tad actually stomps, and I could imagine him muttering "meddling kids" to himself!), and the suspension of disbelief about the canisters wedged in rock ledges, I really enjoyed this book. Young readers who enjoy clue oriented mysteries and outdoor adventures will pick this one up, especially with this great cover.
Copy provided by the publisher
Am I the only one who remembers the late 1980s Time-Life Mysteries of the Unknown books? Or even earlier incarnations? My parents were big fans of taking advantage of the offer to look at the first book in this mail order series and then cancel if they didn't want to continue, which meant I spent a lot of my childhood reading the first volumes of a lot of different series. The books were packed with information, and very interesting. This new Lonely Planet title reminded me of those fun, nonfiction titles.
Mysterious World is definitely updated for the new millennium, however, and like Lonely Planet's Your Ultimate Travel Adventure List, makes sure to include locations from around the world. Entries include some well known mysteries, like Bigfoot and the Wendigo in North America, but also includes some that I hadn't heard, like the Ogopogo. I liked that each geographic section started with a map showing where the various mysteries could be found.
The pages are formatted rather like a scrapbook, with pictures in the background, photographs "paperclipped" to pages, and lots of snippets of information shown in boxes. There are vintage illustrations, some more maps, and discussion boxes about "Hoax or Reality". My favorite bits were when there was a box stamped "Solved" and light was shed on why a supposedly supernatural occurrence really happened. This has a glossary and an index, making it easier to find information hidden in the crammed pages, and even has a page about what do you really believe.
I always tell my students that if something has never shown up in my backyard, I don't believe in it, but this doesn't stop them from wearing out my "nonfiction" books on the topics. Readers who enjoyed Fleming's Crash From Outer Space , Williams' Deadly Hauntings, or Hollihan's Ghosts Unveiled will find this a fascinating tome, and probably need a copy to carry around and read at night under the blankets with a flashlight.
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