Books that encourage observation and thinking are always in demand with me as gifts for children. Mystery Mansion is a nice combination of both. The book is difficult enough that several people can work on it simultaneously. Those who enjoy this book will eventually graduate to the I Spy . . . and Where's Waldo? books. This book can be enjoyed as a prereader by spotting the hidden creatures and characters, or as a reader by locating the hidden letters and messages as well. I suspect that it will be most appealing to 6-7 year olds who have a taste for slightly scary situations and creatures. The potential discomfort is lessened by seeing Aunt Jeanne hiding on each page that involves the mansion. The creatures are not really threatening, they just look ugly.
Aunt Jeanne sends a rhyming invitation to her Victorian mansion after she returns from a trip. Although she's not there, she leaves other rhyming clues to direct her nephew Tommy. She has Tommy all over the house and grounds, and into secret places as well.
Her rhymes are pretty simple, but are probably like what someone's actual aunt might write.
"On the trip I collected/My own little zoo./I chose all the creatures/Especially for you."
"I am the cheese,/You are the mouse . . . ."
"Find the next note/And your tour will begin . . . ."
The main challenge is to find all the creatures. These include bats, snakes, frogs, lizards, mice, fish, butterflies, and birds. Be sure to count ones that are reflections or appear as sculptures. Use the cover and all the pages. There are a lot to count. For younger children, you'll probably have to help them keep count.
You also have three mystery characters to look for.
In addition, throughout the pages there are hidden letters which you can unscramble for a message. On another page, there are letters for unscrambling a second message.
The answers are in the back of the book, for those who want to check their work.
To me, the book's main drawback is that after it has all been figured out it will not be as much fun. But it will probably still be pulled out from time to time as memory fades. When it hasn't been pulled out in a year, I suggest that you ask your child's permission to give the book to someone else for whom it will be brand new. Perhaps a cousin would enjoy it.
After you have finished having fun with this, I suggest that you think about staging your own version of the book at home for a special occasion. You could have cut-outs or decals of little creatures to scatter all over the house. Just be sure that you keep a map of where you put them, so they can be retrieved later if any are missed.
Look closely at all that is around you to see the wonder of our world.
