By the time I was 11, I had all of life figured out. I’d found three book series that I liked, and I figured I could just keep rereading those three over and over and never again have to worry about finding new books. One of those books was The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart. Eventually, I read it so many times I grew sick of it, and didn’t touch it again for six years. This summer, I finally returned to the story, and came to a conclusion: it’s quite good. My favorite description of The Mysterious Benedict Society is this: imagine Harry Potter, but instead of the students having magical powers, they’re all just really nerdy. Oh, and the school is evil. The story follows a team of four incredibly talented orphans as they enroll at a school that seems bent on purging its students’ minds of logic and common sense. But the school’s the center of a much larger nefarious plot, and Reynie, Sticky, Kate and Constance are spies sent to uncover it. Our four heroes are strangers to each other at the beginning of the book, but in the midst of danger and with the guidance of the wise old Mr. Benedict, their friendship grows into something powerful and beautiful. The character development is my favorite part of the book. I especially enjoy how Reynie, Sticky and Kate grow in their relationship with Constance— the most difficult-to-love member of the team. I highly recommend either a) reading The Mysterious Benedict Society yourself or b) giving it to your child to read (or both). The TV show: The Mysterious Benedict Society was recently adapted into a miniseries that is currently being released on Disney+. Read the book first. I suspect it would have been better as a single film rather than eight hour-long episodes. As is, loads of unnecessary subplots bog down the core story, including a random high-stakes tetherball match (I’m honestly baffled as to why anyone thought adding that would be good idea). The characters fall short of the vibrancy they possess in the book. The show leaves out most of the small details that really made them come to life (like Sticky’s bald head and Constance taking naps all the time). Even Mr. Benedict’s narcolepsy barely gets a passing mention. But despite its flaws, I’m still going to watch the remaining episodes as they come out. Mainly because my little brother Nate loves it and begs me to watch the new episode with him every Friday. The show’s not bad— it just could have been a lot better. I’d like to see it animated, mainly for Constance’s sake. There’s no actor on earth who could do her character justice.
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Progress on Doombear, Rough draft:10%
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"In truth, by leaving, I was seeking only one thing. A journey."
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