Module 9: The London Eye Mystery

The London Eye Mystery

A.    The London Eye Mystery is a tale of a pair of siblings, Ted and Kat, and their journey to discover what fate has befallen their cousin.  Ted is identified has having Asperger’s Syndrome and Salim, the pair’s cousin, is hinted at having a similar condition.  Ted and Kat spring into action once they attempt to collect Salim from a ride on the Eye, a tram of sorts in London, and yet he has somehow disappeared from the ride.  The kids uncover a variety of clues to track him down and bring him back to their aunt before something drastic happens to him.  Ultimately, it is revealed that Salim had help in his escape and was not kidnapped but went into hiding, at which point Ted deduces his hiding place and they find Salim at last.

B.     Dowd, S. (2007). The London eye mystery. New York: Random House Children’s Books.

C.     I felt the story was rather well put together.  It is unusual to have a protagonist who has a disability but the book retains a positive message and treats them with the sympathy and consideration they deserve.  While the story of two siblings learning to understand one another is a familiar one, the extra dimension here makes well-worn territory seem interesting once again.  In addition, the mystery itself goes through a variety of twists and is actually rather well spun, especially for an example of the genre designed for children.  I would overall recommend this book as accessible, entertaining, and very empathetic.

D.    “So cleverly and tightly is the mystery orchestrated that little details that don't seem important come into play, and though Ted is celebrated for his different mind capable of working this out, it is the collaboration of brother and sister, even when the adults pay little attention to them, that is crucial.” –Dean Schneider

Schneider, D. (2011). The Best School Novel I've Ever Read. Book Links, 20(3), 4-7.

E.     This is a difficult book to plan activities around, but perhaps one of the best ways to do it would be to have a frank discussion of how people with different talents get along.  The book focuses on two main characters and I would ask the students to think about what sort of people they deal with on a regular basis.  Is there anyone that they need to get along with that may be quite different from them?  I would have the kids write about what these experiences mean and what they have managed to accomplish with this person with different talents that they may not have been able to do alone.