Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein

Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics

by Chris Grabenstein

adventure, mystery, puzzle-type book

age 9-12

grade 4-7

271 pages

c. 2016

                The sequel to Escape From Mr. Lemoncello’s Library is another entertaining, fast paced book filled with more puzzles, riddles and clues to solve. Students from around the U.S. wanted a chance to complete in a library quest so Mr. Lemoncello set up regional competitions that will end in a Library Olympics in his hometown. The winners of the first contest will be the defending champions. However, this time the competition will be much harder and the team is worried about their chances of winning again. There are also some people in town, led by Charlie, the rich boy who lost in the first game by cheating, who dislike the new library and want to take control over it. Finally Mr. Lemoncello has his own, private reason for conducting the Library Olympics. In this book, unlike the first, not everything is as it appears and not everyone is who they appear to be.

                There are many books, old and new, mentioned as well as some interesting library facts. I did not know that Shel Silverstein’s book The Light in the Attic was banned from a school in Wisconsin in 1985 because “the book encouraged children to break dishes so they would not have to dry them.” My favorite rebus puzzle was a quote from Neil Gaiman. “Google can bring you back one hundred thousand answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one." There are more logic puzzles in this book as well as games that involve knowledge of books, research skills and book cart relays. As in the first book this is an action packed, plot-driven story without deep character development. The joys of reading, using your imagination, thinking outside of the book, and real friendships are all celebrated in the book. In the end it is only those willing to sacrifice a lot to do what is right that are the true champions. Issues of banned books and freedom of speech are also addressed and at the end of the book there is a list of all the books mentioned in the story. The list consists of 76 titles.