Opening the newest, super-duper-high-tech library in town, its owner, the eccentric visionary Mr. Lemoncello, decided to invite 12 children to a quest game where they would have to compete against each other for several days. The goal: find a way out of the library building. The clues are everywhere. The prizes are mind-blowing.
The children will search for answers in books, board games, computer games, sounds, and even smells. They will interact with numerous holograms and request consultations with various experts. Gradually, participants will be eliminated, while the remaining ones join forces in teams. And then split up again. Because this isn't just a bare-bones plot—the characters are also well-developed.
"Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library" most resembles "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler...", both of which are constantly referenced here. As are dozens of other books, both famous and not. It is likely assumed that the reader should know them all, but that requires a solid American cultural background; otherwise, many of the references will simply be incomprehensible. If you are deeply rooted in American culture, you should be in the loop. If not, well, you'll just follow the characters and perhaps jot down a reading list in a special notebook.
Aside from the fact that this highly intellectual work mercilessly exposes the depth of the reader's ignorance, the book has nothing but merits: a dynamic, well-thought-out, and coherent plot; good language and translation; complex and interesting puzzles; and distinct, expressive characters.
We recommend this to all teenagers who would choose to dive headfirst into a book over anything else. And to those well-read teens who love to flatter their own egos, as they are capable of deciphering this cultural code. And, of course, to those who hope to one day climb out of the abyss of philistinism and are compiling lists of the great unread (which is, after all, why we are all here).
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