MR. LEMONCELLO'S VERY FIRST GAME

Luigi Lemoncello gets inspiration from a master showman.

After writing five successful adventures starring legendary billionaire Prof. Lemoncello, Grabenstein looks back in time to 1968, when young Luigi, the seemingly talentless middle child in a large Italian American family, realizes that his love for puzzles and games is his personal gift. When the 13-year-old successfully solves the rebus puzzle and attracts more customers to the Balloon-centration booth at a summer carnival, barker Prof. Marvelmous offers him a job. Marvelmous becomes a mentor; his niece, Maggie, a friend. She and Luigi visit the library regularly, follow treasure hunts offered by a local radio station, and work together to discover the secrets of the elaborate puzzle box Marvelmous has created. The author offers hints and instructions for solving the puzzles and has left one more (plus his email address) for readers to solve on their own. The fast-paced narrative includes good reading suggestions, popular music from the ’60s, and occasional solid advice. As in earlier books, there’s stress on the importance of teamwork and empathy—young Luigi is as thoughtful and caring as a teenager as he is later as the donor of a splendid library and instigator of brain-teasing contests. Luigi’s bullying blond nemesis, Chadwick Chiltington, is likely the father of Charles from previous series entries.

Splendiferous—and sure to lead readers back to previous puzzle adventures.