Book Review: The Mysterious Benedict Society

By Penny Rhoads

“Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?”   

   When this peculiar advertisement appears in the  local newspaper of Stone Town Harbor, in the book, The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, hundreds of children apply to take a series of mind bending tests. One 11 year old boy named Renard “Reynie” Muldoon, is puzzled by the ad. Mr. Nicholas Benedict, creator of the tests, has been using them to find extraordinary children to help resolve a problem that could affect the world drastically. While Reynie is undergoing his tests the reader is being tested as well; challenged to think about life and how other people think.

   There are multiple rooms to take the same test and in the end Reynie is the only one who passes the test in his group. As Reynie takes the second test some of the other kids start freaking out and running out of the room. As Reynie reads he soon finds out the test is impossible and he knows none of the answers, but he is determined. There are 30 questions, and as Reynie comes to the 15th question, he pauses. The 1st and 15th question answer each other, this is the same for the rest of them. This is an example of the types of fun loopholes you, the reader, will find.

    Reynie is again the only child who passes the second test in his group. The woman in the room with them escorts Reynie to a hall where two other children; George (Sticky) Washington and Kate Wetherall are also waiting. From then on the three children go through two more tests together. Along the way the children meet a fourth gifted child, who is particularly advanced for her age, named Constance Contraire.

   The four children are recruited to investigate the strange brain messages coming from the “The Learning Institute for the very enlightened” or L.I.V.E, which has also used the extraordinary children to use their gifts to control people.  

    The Mysterious Benedict Society can be a very complicated and confusing book. I would suggest it would be best for 10 to 12 year olds. If you want to challenge yourself and you’re younger than ten then this could be a great book.

    I always thought the abbreviation for the academy was a little cheesy. If you write it backwards it spells E.V.I.L. This was not revealed in the book but I believe the author did this on purpose.  This is the first in a series of three books about these four kids, along with a puzzle book and a prequel book on Mr. Benedict, the organizer of these tests, who you will learn more about as you read.

   There are many puzzles and secrets ready to be read in The Mysterious Benedict Society. I would rate this book a four star out of five because it can be a little unorganized at times.