The Multiplying Mysteries of Mount Ten

March 11, 2019
Seventh-grader Esther, an artist, can’t wait for her week at Camp Vermeer, but when her stepfather gets lost en route, accidentally landing them on the wrong mountain, Esther ends up at Camp Archimedes for math lovers. To Esther’s dismay, a raging storm prevents them from leaving. After she solves a brainteaser to impress the others, though, she becomes captivated by a mysterious math puzzle indicating that someone at the camp will be murdered. As typed clues begin appearing, the campers band together to puzzle them out before someone dies. Esther, whose math skills prove strong, leads the investigation, and readers can join in to test their own puzzle-solving prowess. A tie-in with a nationwide mystery about the Fenimore Forger, who has been getting away with replicating famous paintings for years, adds intrigue. The isolated setting provides the perfect backdrop for this fast-paced mystery by Van Dolzer (The Sound of Life and Everything) starring a quirky crew of well-drawn characters. Though the message about excelling at more than one thing can feel heavy-handed, Esther’s leadership skills and tenacity are inspiring, as is her growth as she forges connections with campers she initially dismisses. Ages 8–12. Agent: Brent Taylor, TriadaUS Literary Agency.

February 1, 2019
When bad weather and a wrong turn accidentally send an art-loving 12-year-old girl to Camp Archimedes, a math camp, instead of her intended destination, Camp Vermeer, things get a bit weird. Once fate brings Esther Lambert to a brainy camp where she feels like "an alien from the planet Creativity," she finds herself unwittingly drawn in by compelling algebraic puzzles and logic challenges. Being the first to solve the inaugural brainteaser of the summer with an original solution gives her confidence. But then mysterious notes, camp history, and a spooky legend about the man who gave the land to the camp collide to lead her on a wacky hunt for what appears to be a serial murderer. Eventually her transition to newly minted math nerd is complete. Esther herself is solid and earnest, the math aspect is engaging, and the exuberant energy of the story is contagious. However, the pacing feels uneven, character development is limited, and it's not always clear where and why the plotline goes where it does or what is at stake. The effort to encourage girls to transition from single-minded focus on the arts to also believing in their math abilities feels sincere if a bit heavy-handed. Esther is depicted as white on the cover, and diversity among secondary characters is indicated through naming convention and description.A well-intentioned premise with a few potentially thought-provoking puzzles thrown in for good measure. (Mystery. 8-12)

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March 1, 2019
Grades 4-6 On a road trip to art camp during a thunderstorm, 12-year-old Esther and her stepdad, Toby, are stranded after their truck hits a boulder on the flooded roadway. Luckily, they find refuge at a nearby math camp, which is known for its cryptography course. Esther joins the sparse crew of campers and soon impresses them by solving a challenging puzzle. But mysteries abound: Where is Esther's cabinmate Angeline? Who's leaving cryptic clues? And what other secrets lurk at Camp Archimedes? After Esther stumbles across clues, a few fellow campers join her in late-night sleuthing expeditions. She narrates her adventures, telling how her art skills help her solve logic puzzles, gathering a great many clues, and leaping to the unwarranted conclusion that she's on the trail of a murderer, which ramps up the tension for the young investigators and perhaps for readers as well. Esther's warm relationship with her stepfather is an appealing facet of the story. Not a classic mystery, but a chapter book with some appeal for kids who enjoy math and cryptography problems.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)