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The Book Scavenger by by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

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Brief synopsis (no spoilers): Twelve-year-old Emily is on the move again. Her family is relocating to San Francisco, home of her literary idol: Garrison Griswold, creator of the online sensation Book Scavenger, a game where books are hidden all over the country and clues to find them are revealed through puzzles. But Emily soon learns that Griswold has been attacked and is in a coma, and no one knows anything about the epic new game he had been poised to launch. Then Emily and her new friend James discover an odd book, which they come to believe is from Griswold and leads to a valuable prize. But there are others on the hunt for this book, and Emily and James must race to solve the puzzles Griswold left behind before Griswold's attackers make them their next target.  (Goodreads)

Category: Juvenile/middle grades

Why I chose this book: I love books and treasure hunt stories. I thought it sounded a lot like Mr. Lemoncello's Library, which I also enjoyed. 

My personal opinion (the review): This book was really fun. It deal with books and literary history, scavenger hunts, and ciphers- what else could a girl ask for. And to boot it has references to the importance of family and about learning to be a good friend. One slightly annoying part was Steve, Jame's cowlick. I'm sure the author was just trying to reach the middle grade audience, but for me it was overplayed. Otherwise a fun read and I can't wait for the next in the series to come out. 

Warnings
Language: None
Violence: None
"Adult" situations:None  
Death: None

Movie rating equivalent: PG

Protagonist description: Emily is looking for a place to set down roots in her changing world where her family moves all the time. She is a talented cryptographer, but gets too wrapped up in her work sometimes. 

Point of view of story: Third person, from Emily's point of view

Book length: Short

Story flow: Fluid

Grammar and spelling issues: None

Character connection (no spoilers): None 

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