Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics by Chris Grabenstein
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I always enjoy the Mr. Lemoncello's Library series because there are all these little nods to other books, and I like to see how many of them I can spot. Also, I just really wish the library was real and in my town.

In this book, kids all over the country want their chance to prove themselves against the winners from the first book, so a new game is declared, library Olympics. Part of me thinks I would love to be a part of this, and part of me, after having read this book, realizes that I know absolutely nothing that would qualify me to enter. These kids are smart. The ones that are chosen not only know a lot about what happens in different books, I could do that, but they know the Dewey decimal system backwards and forwards, and can solve rebus puzzles in no time. It's those last two that get me.

Charles, who was the sour loser in the first book is back, with an annoying addition. He makes for a good adversary just because of how annoying he is. Really, how can someone hold a grudge for as long as he does? It has to be a record of some kind.

There were a lot of new characters, which I always find hard to keep straight, but Chris Grabenstein did a good job of really focusing on the characters that mattered and just mentioning the others in passing. It helped move the story forward without bogging it down with a lot of unnecessary dialog or action.

As the book was coming to a close, before everything was brought to light, I was kind of getting anxiety. I think that anyone who really loves books will get a little worried with the way things are progressing close to the end, especially lovers of banned books.

All in all, a good book that was another enjoyable read.

Author: Chris Grabenstein
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: January 5th 2016

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