Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman Amy Atkinson Bertman, Jennifer Chambliss Book Scavenger; illus. by Sarah Watts. Ottaviano/Holt, 2015 354p ISBN 978-1-62779-115-1 $16.99 R Gr. 4-6 As part of her parents’ quest to live in all fifty states, twelve-year-old Emily finds herself in San Francisco. She thrills to be near her idol: publishing magnate Garrison Griswold, whose whimsy and love of books and puzzles inspired him to create interactive games for readers, including the titular Book Scavenger. When Griswold is shot in a presumed subway mugging, Emily visits the site of the attack, where she [End Page 10] discovers a copy of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Gold-Bug” bearing the seal of Griswold’s publishing company and containing a number of curious errors. Sensing something odd, Emily enlists the help of James, her new—really, her first—friend and fellow puzzle junkie. Together they uncover a multi-layered mystery, part game, part life-or-death, all unfolding against the richly detailed backdrop of the City by the Bay. A love letter to San Francisco and its literary history, this well-paced novel of intrigue also provides quite the education, namedropping the likes of Jack Kerouac, Dashiell Hammett, and Amy Tan, diving into the world of ciphers, and offering bountiful brainteasers with Dickensian naming devices (there’s an explanatory author’s note), all while maintaining a skillful and satisfying balance of brains and heart. Emily’s struggle to be a friend is authentic and sympathetic, as is her growing dissatisfaction with her family’s transient lifestyle. This will rivet fans of Balliett’s Chasing Vermeer (BCCB 7/04) or Raskin’s The Westing Game (BCCB 9/78), which gets an in-text shout-out; be prepared to start a Book Scavenger chapter (pun intended) in your own library, stat. Copyright © 2015 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois