The Mysterious Benedict Society (book)

We start off our story with Reynie Muldoon, an orphan, waiting to enter a building for the next stage of administration. The first test had already been unusual, with questions like “Are you brave?” and “Do you like to watch television.” The next stage was no less strange, with impossible questions and hidden puzzle that gives you all the answers. While waiting for the third test, Reynie meets Sticky and Kate. Sticky has a amazing memory and is very shy. He passed the test by sheer memory of all the questions. Kate, on the other hand, didn't pass the second test. However, she got the test administrator out of a sticky situation. She is very outgoing and is extremely athletic. She also carries a bucket around at all times. The third stage of testing is to simply cross a room without your feet touching any black and yellow squares. However, the whole room is covered in black and yellow! Sticky crosses the room on his hands and knees, and Kate crosses using acrobatics, but Reynie just laughs and walks right across. It turns out that the floor was actually covered in rectangles, not squares. The fourth stage of testing is a maze, and the clue is “You should be able to do it with your eyes closed." Kate crawls through the air ducts, and Sticky makes his way by pure memorization, and Reynie follows textured arrows on the side panels through the maze. After passing all the tests, the three children are called to meet Mr Benedict, the reason they were all here. They were joined by another, extremely cranky little girl named Constance. Then Mr Benedict tells them all about the Emergency, which is a worldwide belief that everything is out of control, and how a man named Ledroptha Curtain created it and plans to use it to take over the world. He runs L.I.V.E, a school situated on Nomanson island, where the only entrance is a bridge, or be torn to bits in the rocky waters. Just after Mr Benedict finishes explaining, an alarm buzzer blares. Constance runs away in fear and gets caught by the Recruiters, hired kidnappers that bring kids to L.I.V.E. Milligan, one of Mr Benedict’s assistants, fights the ten men and gets Constance back. Later that evening, the four children get together and name themselves “The Mysterious Benedict Society.” The next day, the team goes to L.I.V.E to register. After settling in, they learn that to stop Mr Curtain, they must become messengers. They also learn that the two guides, named Jackson and Jillson, were executives, which is basically when a messenger gets promoted. They then go to classes and find the classes strange. However, Sticky and Reynie quickly master the material and become Messengers. They also find out that Mr Curtain is actually Mr Benedict’s twin brother and that he can “brainsweep” people by erasing their memories. Soon, Reynie and Sticky are called to Mr Curtain’s office for their “Secret privileges.” They find out that he is using a device called the Whisperer, which looks like a big, metal, chair to broadcast the message that everything is out of control to the world. Later, Kate finds out that Mr Curtain plans to unleash his evil plan in three days. The team gives the entire school food poisoning so the boys can get into the whispering chamber in time to stop Mr Curtain. The plan works and the boys get into the whispering chamber. Reynie signals to the girls and they come running. The executives follow them, and a fight occurs. Kate sends Constance to the boys and engages the executives. She’s losing badly when Milligan appears and stops them. It turns out that Milligan was Kate’s father and a secret agent before Mr Curtain brainsweeped him. Kate gets up to the whispering chamber just as Mr Curtain tries to brainsweep them. However, Constance gets into the Whisperer and begins to fight him mentally. Constance wins and they open up a secret passageway with Mr Benedict and his associates. They all get off the island, but Mr Curtain also escapes with some recruiters and executives. At a party at Mr Benedict’s house, the team learns that Constance is actually three, which explains why she is so cranky. In the end, everybody has a happy ending.

The Mysterious Benedict Society has received generally positive reviews. Many critics praised the enigmatic plot and puzzles included in the storyline; journalist Michele Norris, writing for NPR, said, "Almost everything inside this book is an enigma."[2] Additionally, the ethical decisions and moral lessons contained within the book were praised. Kirkus Reviews said that the book was "rich in moral and ethical issues."[3] Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, wrote, "I enjoyed it very much -- great cast of characters, lots of cool puzzles and mysteries. The book made me feel nostalgic, because it reminded me of some of the better children’s books I grew up with, like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Phantom Tollbooth."[4]

The Mysterious Benedict Society was a New York Times bestseller in 2008[5] and won a 2007 Booklist Editors' Choice: Books for Youth award,[6] a 2008 Notable Children's Book for Middle Readers award from the American Library Association,[7] the 2008 E.B. White Read Aloud Award for Older Readers,[8] and a 2008 Texas Lone Star Reading List award.[9]

Three sequels were published in 2008, 2009, and 2019: The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey, The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma, and The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Riddle of Ages.

A prequel, The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict, was released on April 10, 2012.[10]

A supplementary book, The Mysterious Benedict Society: Mr. Benedict's Book of Perplexing Puzzles, Elusive Enigmas, and Curious Conundrums, was also released.

The novel served as the basis for the first season of the television series of the same name. Like most adaptations, there are numerous divergences, most of them revolving around giving more establishment and agency to the series. The biggest difference is that the show adds more background to Mr. Benedict and Dr. Curtain, the story of which somewhat contradicts the novel The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict. Characters such as Number Two, Ms. Perumal, Rhonda Kazembe and Milligan are also given more development than the novel.

While the Society's background are relatively unchanged, Sticky now lives with his aunt and uncle instead of his parents and Constance is aged up and given a more sarcastic disposition. The characterizations of characters such as Jackson and Jillson and Martina are radically altered, specifically with the latter who, unlike her novel counterpart, reforms at the end. A lot of the challenges and puzzles were changed to appear even more difficult than those featured in the novel.

The series is also more grounded and makes the issues feel more relevant. One of the prime examples being the explanation for Mr. Benedict's machine. In the novel, he states that he cannot go to the police about his findings because they will not understand it, while in the series, he states that it is due to the fact that some people will simply refuse to believe him.

• An interview with the author, Trenton Lee Stewart
• The official website for The Mysterious Benedict Society