The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
Having just gone on a spree of reading 3 books from Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events for my English class’ free reading, a sixth grade me was looking for an alternative style and genre of book. I wanted to take a break from these books that were shrouded with mystery and sadness. I wanted to read a book that didn’t require me to think so much about an unknown mystery that led to the reveal of a big, usually sad, secret. When I ventured to the library to pick out this perfect book, I ended up finding the book for me: The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart.
For this week’s blog, I re-read The Mysterious Benedict Society; one of my personal favorite books (it is also a series with three other books). The Mysterious Benedict Society follows Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance who all come from Stonetown, a small town with neatly kept lawns. They pass a series of strange tests set up by the mysterious and narcoleptic Mr. Benedict, to find only the brightest and most gifted children. Under his guidance they are recruited and become spies – their mission to investigate messages being broadcast by Mr. Benedict’s evil twin brother from a strange island to the entire planet making people believe the end of the world is coming.
I find myself saying this quite a lot in these blogs, but I did not want to go too in depth on the story’s summary as I think it truly is a great novel that you should definitely read. I really enjoyed everything about it from the weird and interesting characters and setting to its writing style. Stewart’s writing is very unique in its own way and could be described as similar to Lemony Snicket, but with more humorous and interesting details, rather than sad ones. For instance, the four children Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance all have little traits that make them special. Stewart could simply have said they were “gifted” and left it at that, but he included very unique details in their character with the most notable traits being Sticky being able to memorize any piece of information and Kate who carries around a bucket filled with any kind of tool or gadget one needs.
There are tons of other smaller details throughout the story too, such as Mr. Benedict suffering from narcolepsy or Sticky’s baldness from an early age. This also leads me to one of the most unique aspects of the book: the characters. As I’ve already talked about, there are so many little features and traits that Stewart includes in each character that give each of them a distinct and unique presence. The feeling of reading about each characters’ talents and how they use them really does feel quite unique. For example, in the series of tests given by Mr. Benedict, each of the four children were able to pass using their own knowledge, wit, tools, and methods, leaving you with a sense of satisfaction when they complete a puzzle or task.
Personally, I didn’t find anything really negative about the book. I have heard that to some, the book feels quite long and drawn as it is around 500 pages, but I think that each chapter is new and exciting enough that I was fully captivated in the story. For me, the only struggle I really had with the book was at the start as the story did seem to begin slowly to me, but if you have the chance to read it, or have already read it, you may disagree. Overall, The Mysterious Benedict Society is one of my favorite books and so, I’d give it an 11.5/13 bologna slices.
I find myself saying this quite a lot in these blogs, but I did not want to go too in depth on the story’s summary as I think it truly is a great novel that you should definitely read. I really enjoyed everything about it from the weird and interesting characters and setting to its writing style. Stewart’s writing is very unique in its own way and could be described as similar to Lemony Snicket, but with more humorous and interesting details, rather than sad ones. For instance, the four children Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance all have little traits that make them special. Stewart could simply have said they were “gifted” and left it at that, but he included very unique details in their character with the most notable traits being Sticky being able to memorize any piece of information and Kate who carries around a bucket filled with any kind of tool or gadget one needs.
There are tons of other smaller details throughout the story too, such as Mr. Benedict suffering from narcolepsy or Sticky’s baldness from an early age. This also leads me to one of the most unique aspects of the book: the characters. As I’ve already talked about, there are so many little features and traits that Stewart includes in each character that give each of them a distinct and unique presence. The feeling of reading about each characters’ talents and how they use them really does feel quite unique. For example, in the series of tests given by Mr. Benedict, each of the four children were able to pass using their own knowledge, wit, tools, and methods, leaving you with a sense of satisfaction when they complete a puzzle or task.
Personally, I didn’t find anything really negative about the book. I have heard that to some, the book feels quite long and drawn as it is around 500 pages, but I think that each chapter is new and exciting enough that I was fully captivated in the story. For me, the only struggle I really had with the book was at the start as the story did seem to begin slowly to me, but if you have the chance to read it, or have already read it, you may disagree. Overall, The Mysterious Benedict Society is one of my favorite books and so, I’d give it an 11.5/13 bologna slices.
I also read this book around sixth grade, but I had completely forgotten about it until I read your post. Hearing your brief summary was enough to remind me of how much I enjoyed this book. I definitely agree that the characters stick out as one of the best aspects of this book, although I do remember thinking that it was a little too drawn out. After being reminded of how good this book was, I may have to look into the rest of the series over break.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of this book before, but after reading your review, I might check it out! I liked how you described the unique traits of each of the characters, as that allowed me to understand the depth of the characters. I also liked how you talked about the similarities and differences between A Series of Unfortunate Events. I read A Series of Unfortunate Events a while ago, and although I really enjoyed Lemony Snicket's writing style, I agree that the series was very sad. Since you describe this book to be happier version of the series, it sounds like a book I would really enjoy. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteI have read the entire MBS series (I accidentally started at the third book :() and thoroughly enjoyed each one of them. I agree that one of the most compelling aspects of these book are the characters and the way Stewart builds their personalities. Your description of it being a happier version of a Series of Unfortunate Events was spot on. I might be digging these books up again sometime soon.
ReplyDeleteI remember reading this series and I agree with pretty much everything you say in this review. The small inclusion of more serious issues also makes the book all the more realistic and fun to read. The characters all felt relevant and interesting for their talents. The books did feel a little slow at parts, but I agree that each new chapter felt unique and interesting. Your review was written very well and it was captivating to read. Nice job.
ReplyDeleteI read this book last year, and I thought it was great. Sticky was by far my favorite character,but I really liked all of the characters. I agree with your review of the book. I didn't know that it was a series though. Thanks for writing this review. I think I will look at the other books in the series soon
ReplyDeleteI remember reading this series in 5th grade and really enjoying. But, I did find it slow at some points. I also enjoyed all of the characters' unique talents and traits and how they impacted the story in important ways. Recently, I've been thinking about rereading this book and really enjoyed reading this review.
ReplyDeleteThis was one of my favorite book series in elementary school (was it 4th grade?), and I remember how ingenious I thought the various puzzles were. I really enjoyed the writing style and the different characters' personalities (especially Constantine's), so I'm glad you pointed those things out. It was refreshing to read about a book series I loved so much from another person's point of view. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteI remember reading this book in elementary school, it was probably one of my favorites. I thought that the writing style was really advanced and complicated and enjoyed the unique character descriptions. I really enjoyed reading your review and found it to be extremely engaging. Good job!
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