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Richie's Picks: THE 39 CLUES: BOOK ONE: THE  MAZE OF BONES by Rick Riordan, 
Scholastic, September 9, 2008, 182p., ISBN:  0-545-06039-7
 
 
If you hadn't yet heard of THE 39 CLUES, you will be  hearing all about it 
soon enough.  DreamWorks has acquired the screen  rights and Steven Spielberg 
will apparently direct the movie.  As  described in Variety (of all places), 
"THE 39 CLUES," which  launches Sept. 9, is envisioned as a 10-book series to be 
released over two  years. It's described as a multimedia adventure that will 
include a set of  collectible cards and an online game that will serve as a 
portal as young  readers try to solve a mystery for a grand prize of $10,000. The 
contest will  run for two years."
 
Okay.  A book with a bunch of gimmicks and prizes,  right?  Sounds a little 
fluffy, perhaps?
 
But the fact is that the first book -- THE MAZE OF BONES  -- is great!  Not 
only is it an engaging mystery and thriller,  but it also taught me a bunch of 
neat stuff about geography and history and  American cultural landmarks. 

 
"Aunt Beatrice kept driving and muttering about spoiled  children.  Amy 
secretly went back to her huge book.  The last two  days, since they got the news 
about Grace's death, Amy had been reading even  more than usual.  Dan knew it 
was her way of hiding, but he kind of  resented it because it shut him out, too.
"'What are you reading this time?' he asked.   "Medieval European Doorknobs?  
Bath Towels Through the  Ages?'
"Amy gave him an ugly face -- or an uglier-than-usual  face.  'None of your 
business, dweeb.'
"'You can't call a ninja lord dweeb.  You have  disgraced the family.  You 
must commit seppuku.'
"Amy rolled her eyes.
"After a few more miles, the city melted into farmland.   It started to look 
like Grace country, and even though Dan had promised himself  he wouldn't get 
sappy, he began to feel sad.  Grace had been the coolest  ever.  She'd treated 
him and Amy like real people, not kids.  That's  why she'd insisted they 
simply call her Grace, not Grandmother or Gran or Nana  or any silly name like 
that.  She'd been one of the only people who'd ever  cared about them.  Now she 
was dead, and they had to go to the funeral and  see a bunch of relatives who 
had never been nice to  them..."
 
Yesterday I spent Jo's and Harry birthday up on the Eel  River, sitting 
alongside my favorite swimming hole, trying to figure out  what facts might be of 
help in uncovering a clue.  What's the deal with the  random page numbering 
that suddenly appears?  What so important about that  photo? 
 
The ten books are being written by different,  well-known authors.  This 
first one is by rocking writer Rick Riordan  of Percy Jackson fame.  The second 
will be by another of my  faves, Gordon Korman.  (I just wrote last month about 
one of his  other upcoming books, a thriller called THE JUVIE  THREE.)
 
"'And yet, all the previous accomplishments of the Cahill clan  are nothing 
compared to the challenge that now faces you.  It is the time  for you to 
discover the greatest secret of the Cahills, to become the most  powerful members 
of the family in history -- or to die trying.'"
 
Amy and Dan Cahill are orphan siblings.  As we  come to recognize, each has 
inherited some of the cognitive abilities  of their talented, late parents.  At 
Grace's funeral, it is announced that  all the heirs in attendance have a 
choice: Each individual  has the option of taking a check for a million dollars 
and walking away OR  the option of taking a clue that will lead to another clue 
that will lead to  another clue that will eventually lead to the REAL 
Earth-shaking  inheritance.  
 
And -- Shades of Hogwarts! -- when Dan bemoans the "bunch of  relatives who 
had never been nice to them," he's not  kidding!  There are four different 
branches of the Cahill clan and it  quickly becomes evident that those relatives 
who, along with Dan and Amy,  opt for the first clue rather than the million 
bucks are going  to stop at nothing to get a leg up on the rest of  the  family.
 
Of course, Scholastic does not want the relatives of  booksellers and 
reviewers and librarians (not to mention the booksellers and  reviewers and 
librarians themselves) to get a leg up on the general public  in solving the 
mystery of 
the first book, SO THEY LEFT THE END OF THE  DARN FIRST BOOK OUT OF THE 
ADVANCE COPIES THEY SENT  US!!!
 
Which means that we, too, will be waiting for September 9th,  when the fun 
begins.  You'll find the clock ticking down to the starting  gun at: 
_http://the39clues.scholastic.com/_ (http://the39clues.scholastic.com/)   
   
Richie  Partington, MLIS
Richie's Picks http://richiespicks.com
Moderator,  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/middle_school_lit/
BudNotBuddy@aol.com
http://www.myspace.com/richiespicks






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