Ms. Pennypickle’s Remarkable Road Race
Ms. Pennypickle’s Puzzlers #2
by Chris Grabenstein
My rating: 3.5 / 5
Genre: Middle grade adventure
After information about Ms. Pennypickle’s puzzle quest was leaked online, Ms. Pennypickle is worried about negative PR from all of the fans who want their shot at a mega prize. So Jack, the head of advertising for the company, sets up an Amazing Race-type game down Route 66. Seven teams of 2 are selected, except that one is missing a partner. Jack’s son Jackson is pushed into being her partner, even though he can’t win the grand prize, since his dad works for the company. But that doesn’t keep him from giving the race his all!
I read the first Ms. Pennypickle book when it first came out around this same time last year. I was really surprised to see that Grabenstein had decided to expand on that story, and now that I’ve read the second one…I’m still surprised. Here’s the thing, though—my bad memory made this second installment more enjoyable than it probably would have been if I had remembered details about the first one. So before I get into this book as its own story, I have to say that if you read the first and remember how it ended, I don’t really know if it’s worth reading this second one. Or I guess you could still read it and just be able to see things working out before secrets are revealed.
Now taking this from the angle of reading it without remembering the first book very well, it was a lot of fun to read. Like a lot of Grabenstein’s books, it seems like characters know way more than normal people do, even with the caveat that they would have studied up on Route 66 before taking on this challenge. There’s a twist to this book that I didn’t see coming (though, as I said above, I probably would have if I’d remembered the first book better). And like with the first book, there are aspects that felt unrealistic but that made sense in the end.
So should you read this book? If you are new to the Pennypickle world, I’d suggest the first book, Ms. Pennypickle’s Puzzle Quest, over this one in general; I really liked the characters and twist more there. Whether you’ve read the first book or not, this book is good overall. Just not terribly unique.
I received an advanced review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
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If you’ve read this book, or read it in the future, feel free to let me know what you think!
