The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

The science fiction novel The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart is about a group of extraordinary children who are trying to save the world while being held hostage by an evil genius, whose plans have finally come to a triumph. The main characters are the previously explained Mysterious Benedict Society, in my other book reviews. Here I shall only share what these characters have newly developed, starting with Constance Contraire. Constance is a four year old, and was already known to have the ability to detect patterns and predict the near future. Now through an embarrasing test, Constance has proven to have mental telepathy, where she can plant thoughts into minds, read minds, and control minds. But these actions have a great cost on her, for when she tries to control what should not be controlled, she gets so ill, even worse than the flu! Next, is the 13 year old, Reynie Muldoon. Reynard has always had the knack for finding the “puzzles” in problems, then cracking the code. In this book, Reynie and Constance’s relationship is less bumpy than others, since Reynie is always more patient with the conflicts of a young child. He has always thought through things with utmost curiosity, and observance. Never wanting to miss an important detail, that would prevail to their victory. Then, there’s Kate Wetherall, the ever-energetic 14 year old. Kate has been known to spring right to action, without giving a chance much second thought. Later on, Kate is found to have the love and worry for her secret agent father, Milligan. It is also demonstrated that Kate can gauge distances with perfect accuracy, which comes to hand later on. When dealing with the Ten Men’s leader, McCraken, it is known that Kate has the reputation of a witty, clever, and bold young girl, “the one who bites” (that’s what they call her). She might be even better than some of the Ten Men themselves. Last but not least is George (Sticky) Washington, the spectacled 13 year old. Later it is shown, that Sticky truly cares a lot about his friends, even willing to sacrifice himself to let Kate escape. Sticky has the bad habit of polishing his spectacles when he’s nervous, but he has finally gotten his anxiety under control. Despite his few occurrences of cowardness, Sticky has the evidence of a hero. The main problem is that Mr. Curtain has captured the four children in some unknown place, as a ransom, to get his precious Whisperer back. My opinion of this last book of the series is marvelous! I love the way the riddles made me have to think and experience the way the characters feel in their situation. Then the way the author described the settings are so detailed, I feel as if I’m touching the rough walls, or gliding across the gleaming floor! I love the twists and turns of humor in Kate’s expressions, the passionate love Milligan has for the children, and the forever-going taste of excitement and adventure in these pages that fill my mind with joy. -Serena

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