{"product_id":"ms-pennypickles-puzzle-quest-isbn-9780593708019","title":"Ms. Pennypickle's Puzzle Quest","description":"\u003cb\u003eFrom the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of the Mr. Lemoncello series comes a race across the country full of rousing riddles and laugh-out-loud humor as two brothers try to solve the million-dollar puzzle of an eccentric genius!\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBenjamin and Ethan Broderick don't fit together. Twelve-year-old Ben loves retro arcade games and puzzles, while his older brother would rather play sports and hang out with his friends. The only thing they have in common is how much they resent being forced to go on a summer road trip.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut at the quirky diner where the brothers make their very first stop, they discover a clue leading to a giant puzzle race with a million-dollar prize! Along with five other families, the Brodericks are thrust into a high-stakes competition along the famous Route 66.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCan Ben and Ethan put their heads together—and put aside their differences—to beat out the other families and solve Ms. Pennypickle's ultimate puzzle?\"\u003cb\u003eReaders will enjoy solving riddles alongside the brothers \u003c\/b\u003eand will root for the pair as they set aside differences, dodge — and sometimes cause — disasters, and encounter entertaining characters and situations.\" —\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] clever and comedic homage to code breaking and treasure hunting....\u003cb\u003ea thoroughly entertaining, lighthearted romp\u003c\/b\u003e.\" —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"This is \u003cb\u003ea delightful ride along Route 66\u003c\/b\u003e and through the ups and downs of brotherhood...This new puzzle adventure from the master of the genre is perfect for fans of Grabenstein’s work and lovers of Murdle puzzles.\" —\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"Grabenstein delivers the humor and \u003cb\u003epuzzle-driven adventure\u003c\/b\u003e fans have come to expect, this time with a somewhat cheesy side of family bonding.\" —\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003eChris Grabenstein is the bestselling author of the Mr. Lemoncello, Smartest Kid in the Universe, Dog Squad, and Welcome to Wonderland series, as well as the coauthor of numerous page-turners with James Patterson and of \u003ci\u003eShine!\u003c\/i\u003e, cowritten with Chris's wife, J.J. Grabenstein.\u003cb\u003eChapter\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e1\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eL‌et’s be honest. If I was my big brother, Ethan, I wouldn’t want to have me as a little brother, either.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst off, Ethan is eighteen, I’m twelve. He’s about to graduate high school. I’m still in the middle of middle school.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe’s supercool. I can be kind of annoying. Because I know stuff. Unfortunately, not everybody wants to hear about it. Plus, I can be sort of embarrassing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCome on. Who else besides me, Benjamin J. Broderick, would come to the multiplex and, instead of watching a movie (especially one with awesome special effects and wall-­rattling explosions), geek out over a retro arcade game?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt’s a relic from the last century. \u003ci\u003eMs. Pennypickle’s Paint Blob Blaster.\u003c\/i\u003e A vintage puzzle game that might’ve been a big hit back when people still shopped at something called a “mall.” It had a joystick that looked like a jumbo-­sized Tootsie Pop, plus dual “fire” buttons you really had to bop. The thing actually took quarters instead of a phone tap or a credit card swipe.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt was the only video game on display in a “Special, Limited Time” promotion for “Ms. Pennypickle’s Most Popular Puzzlers” set up in the lobby of the movie theater. Nobody else wanted to play it. Guess Ms. Pennypickle’s puzzlers weren’t all that popular anymore.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSo, yes, I spent all my movie money on quarters. I spent my snack money on, well, snacks. A jumbo tub of hot buttered popcorn, a big box of Junior Mints, and a soda pop the size of a very tall sand bucket.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI had to lay off the buttered popcorn, though. And not because I’m kind of pudgy and Ethan’s nickname for me has been “Butterball Benji” ever since (at least, according to family lore) that time I tumbled out of my booster seat during Thanksgiving dinner. No, I put the popcorn down when all that slick buttery topping made it hard to flick the joystick.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut I kept leveling up. I was on my way to becoming the high scorer. My competition? Someone from 1993.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen I cleared the second-­to-­last level, a pixelated pickle person pulled yet another puzzle across the screen:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePUT THESE RIVERS IN ORDER BY LENGTH, LONGEST FIRST\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eYenisei\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eMississippi\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNile\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eYangtze\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAmazon\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOb\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eYellow\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI knew the answer. But the machine wanted another quarter before it would let me keep playing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMy pockets were empty. Well, except for some lint. I really wished I’d brought along that roll of quarters that, for some bizarre reason, my aunt Caroline had given me for my birthday.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI panicked. I’d come so far. Thirty-­five levels. Thirty-­five trivia quizzes. I couldn’t quit now. If I could clear the next blob swarm, which would be revealed as soon as I ranked the rivers, the dancing pickle promised me a prize!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI looked around. There was nobody nearby. Nobody to loan me a quarter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSuddenly, doors swung open. A movie had just ended. The audience came streaming out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd there, in a clump of half a dozen other high school kids, was Ethan! He’d just said something that cracked up everybody else. (He’s much funnier than I’ll ever be.)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEthan had his best hoodie on. His jeans were ripped in all the right places. He looked so cool. (My brother always looks extremely cool.)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut, ew, gross. He was holding hands with this girl named Sophia. Her hair and teeth and face were always perfect. She looked like she lived her life inside a soft-­focus Instagram filter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf Ethan and Sophia were on a date, then Ethan had to be carrying some cash. Maybe even a little spare change.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAll I needed was one quarter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThunder boomed. For half a second, I thought it was God urging me on. \u003ci\u003eGo forth and requesteth twenty-­five cents from thy brother.\u003c\/i\u003e Then I realized, no, it’s a thunderstorm. Outside the multiplex’s big glass windows, the parking lot was starting to resemble a fast-­filling lake.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd I’d ridden my bike to the movies.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLuckily, Ethan had borrowed our dad’s pickup truck. I could toss my bike in the cargo bed, and Ethan could drive me home in climate-­controlled comfort.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOf course, we’d only go home after Ethan lent me that quarter so I could finish my game.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLong story short?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEthan gave me the quarter.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut he did not give me the ride home. He and Sophia were heading to the Cheesecake Factory.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHave you ever tried to pedal a bike while wearing squishy underwear and soggy socks?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI don’t recommend it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut when I answered the river quiz and blasted the final blobs, that antique arcade machine spat out a curled slip of paper.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI might’ve looked like a soaked cat when I got home, but, hey, I had my prize.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI also had no idea what I’d actually won.","brand":"Yearling","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48532170801381,"sku":"NP9780593708019","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593708019.jpg?v=1773182926","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/ms-pennypickles-puzzle-quest-isbn-9780593708019","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}