Embedded Files
Elizabeth Enright
This book is set around the two youngest of the Melendy family and one long treasure hunt that lasts for most of a year. It is a wonderful ode to curiosity. I love that the hunt introduces them to interests they might not otherwise have had notably the pleasure of walking round graveyards making up stories to fill out sparse details. The hunt also leads them to ask questions of those around them which often lead to stories that they are curious about for their own sakes even once they know they won't help them solve the clue, in this I particularaly enjoyed Cuffy's storytelling - caught up in nostalgia and memory. This comfort and quiet pleasure in oral family traditions is one that permeates the family making them feel reassuringly ordinary despite a seemingly enormous house. This is aided by Shirley Hughes' cover illustrations, her style really well matched to the book.
One of my only quibbles is that because the riddles are so much based on their memories and their knowledge of the places around their home you can't play along. It would very much go against the Detection Club rules! There is a sense however in which this is a strength, because the mysteries are so personal characters react to them based on their memories and impulses. The obvious answer to one will not be obvious to another, this leads to lots of delightful red herrings and ridiculous situations, my favourite of which is when they try to chop down a waterfall!
The relationship between Oliver and Randy is really well done too, the mutual support and heartfelt congratulations when the other one makes a breakthrough give a comforting feel to the book. Lots of the interactions are very well observed, for example I enjoyed Randy's determination to hang on to some of her bad mood for as long as possible at the begining of the book. I also relished Oliver's quiet realism when Randy tries to add flourishes to her descriptions of situations.
I think this would be a wonderful class read, the themes of curiosity as something that adds a bit of spice to the world and something that can take you to unexpected delights are well worth exploring with a class as are the dynamics of family and the sense of children having something special that is their's, distinct from adult involvement. I kept envisioning the excitement in a class of following their own treasure hunt alongside reading the book, complete with folded pieces of blue paper. It would be a great way to spark curiosity and generate enthusiasm across the curriculum. I haven't yet through through the mechanics of how to make a truely participatory treasure hunt for a class of 30 as opposed to 2 people but I am sure it is possible.
My mother says that it was this book which inspired her to make treasure hunts for my sister and I on our birthdays and even if it wasn't the great read it is that would be enough to thank it for.
Written by Jack.
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