A Review of a Young Readers book by Wendy Mass
I have a deep love of reading and never pass up an opportunity to read. I usually carry a book with me when I go out just in case there are free minutes to fill. Waiting with nothing to do is not an option when I could be filling that time with reading.
Recently I was at my son’s house waiting for the family to be ready to go out. Not realizing there would be a ‘wait time’, I neglected to bring along a book. Therefore, I looked around for something to read. My grandson had a new book in the Young Readers genre and the title (Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life) looked intriguing. I began to read this book written for the 12- 14 year old age range, not planning on doing more than filling a few minutes of time with no intention of reading the entire book. I was wrong. Within two pages I was hooked. The story turned out to be delightful and the writing captured my attention. Thus, I ended up taking the book home with me to finish. This is my review of the book and why I ended up reading a book written for Young Readers.
Synopsis of Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life
Jeremy Fink lives in a New York City apartment with his mom; his dad having died 5 years ago. Jeremy’s best friend, Lizzie, lives in the apartment next door with her dad. Being the same age and both being raised by single parents has brought them close.
As summer vacation begins, Jeramy plans on sleeping late, having a lazy summertime of leisure, going to the state fair, and anticipating his long-awaited thirteenth birthday in one month.
Then, a box arrives in the mail that changes everything.
First, we need to go back over everything that happened in that one month leading up to Jeremy’s birthday. There is the Big Mistake, the old man, the book, the lamp, the telescope, and this box, which started it all.
The mysterious wooden box is beautifully made and has keyholes on four sides. The top has engraved words:
The Meaning of Life: For Jeremy Fink to Open on his 13th Birthday.
The main problem is, the keys to the box are missing and the box is made so that only the keys will open it without destroying what’s inside. Jeremy and Lizzy set off to find the keys…. And thus their summer adventure begins.
Summary
The story is filled with delightful, though rather quirky, characters; a coming-of-age story with surprising twists and thought-provoking ideas. It has a tweens-oriented mystery theme plus many subtle positive messages for youngsters. A really good story especially for those eager to officially become a teenager.
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*Review of the YA book “Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life."
~by Wednesday Elf.
