The treasure hunt True stories of treasures lost, stolen, and found

This solve-a-mystery-on-the-run treasure hunt takes readers through a dozen of the world's most puzzling and famous disappearances, including stolen art masterpieces, jewels buried with the Titanic, and still-missing artifacts, like Viking Lewis chessmen and Russian Fabergé eggs. It also showcases great finds, such as the Terracotta Warriors, 8,000 strong, unearthed by a Chinese farmer in 1974. The story, written in the second person, is extremely involving, starting with the declaration that this is "your" story, beginning with you and your two best friends, Saksham and Zuri, finding a message (signed by Captain Kidd) in a bottle about hidden treasure. The trio of sleuths follows a trail of clues left by a reported ghost captain in real time. Is the captain trying to nab treasures or destroy them? A fun interactive feature here is the opportunity to solve the clues left by the captain, including pigpen ciphers, Morse code, inscriptions, runes, and GPS coordinates, by using a pencil and a separate sheet of paper. The illustrations, hand-painted in gouache, acrylic, and inks, propel readers through the narrative with a mix of representational artwork, informational sidebars, and cartoon panels. Back matter includes a section on how to go on your own treasure hunt, such as orienteering or geocaching. This deft blend of history, mystery, and code-cracking is sure to delight young sleuths.

Searching for treasure exhumes much more than pieces of eight. Brown-skinned Saksham and Zuri and an unnamed pale-skinned child referred to as "you" (a stand-in for readers) undertake a round-the-world journey, always just one step behind the ghost of the infamous pirate Captain Kidd, who's apparently trying to purloin treasures "as revenge for the riches he lost all those years ago." Their pursuit depends on the many convenient clues that Kidd has left for readers, providing motivation for aspiring map readers, code crackers, puzzle solvers, and inscription decipherers. Along the way, the children discover stories of both found and still-missing lost loot, including theMona Lisa, the Viking shipGokstad, India's Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, and China's Terracotta Army. The quest takes the indefatigable trio across the globe, digging up a fair amount of history on the way. Interspersing comics panels with captioned vignettes and full-page illustrations, Wright's brightly detailed and watercolorlike images evoke the far-flung destinations. Despite some editorial lapses, this engaging and information-packed U.K. import offers plenty of visual excitement, including changes of perspective, time period, and composition. The protagonists unearth facts related to geography, history, paleontology, archeology, and cryptic communication during their journey. The revelation at the end might be somewhat of a letdown, but no treasures were harmed during this protracted hunt. Interactive fun that demonstrates that knowledge is the most rewarding treasure of all. (code-breaking explanations; world map; introduction to orienteering, metal-detecting, and geocaching)(Nonfiction/activity book. 7-10) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.