I found this book at the bookseller’s fall trade show and delved in to find that there are two previous volumes in this series. I’m sure I would have benefited by having read the first two, but this was a real pleasure to read without having had that experience. It is ostensibly written for young readers but I find that often books of this type work well for adults who are looking for something less grim and cerebral that most literary fiction. This fits the bill admirably. There is an additional feature that makes this work attractive, at least to me. It is, like the Lemony Snicket books, rife with puns and cultural references that will (it is to be hoped) cause young readers to look harder into references to discover their meanings. For instance, the main characters are sitting on a rickety pier close to the end of the book. It is worn and warped, making walking difficult. It is mentioned that “The Paradocks can be difficult to navigate.” Many other such verbal jokes are sprinkled liberally throughout giving pleasure to the adult reader and a reason to go to the dictionary for the younger set.

The story is brightly written with plenty of action, a large helping of suspense, some violence, although not graphic, and a satisfyingly complex plot with sidetracks, surprises and deliciously evil villains. There is a significant measure of unsurety in the reader’s mind about who is good and who is bad which adds mystery and spice to the adventure. It is a lesson in how the world is often seen as black and white but is more truly cast in shades of grey. Altogether the lessons are presented with a minimum of pedagoguery which works to “land” the message without pain. I would recommend it to anyone who knows a child whose reading level is good and who is curious about words, the world and people. I would have them start with the first two books of the series, “Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes” and “Sophie Quire and the Last Storyguard”.

For adult readers, go for it! This is delightfully lively, well-written and engaging without seeming juvenile or pandering specifically to a young audience. Turn off your “literary” sensitivity and engage your child’s imagination and wonder and you’ll get a huge kick out of this one.