The 39 Clues

Over Christmas Break, I decided to read the first book in The 39 Clues series. Then I decided to read all of the books published so far - that means 6 books out of the 10 that Scholastic has planned to publish.

The 39 Clues series follows the story of Amy and Dan Cahill, middle school aged siblings who lost their parents in a fire when they were very young. Now they have also lost their grandmother to cancer. At the reading of her will she gives her relatives a choice - accept a check for one million dollars, or forfeit the check to have a chance to search for 39 clues which when put together properly, will make you the most influential person in the world.

Oh, and by the way, if the Clues fall into the wrong hands, it could mean the end of the world as we know it.

Amy and Dan travel all over the world looking for clues. At every turn, their lives are threatened by their own relatives who are also in the hunt for the Clues. The coolest thing about the series is how they teach you about people in history and take you to see things and places that you wouldn't normally see in books. The stories move quickly and are fairly interesting, and they certainly set you up to want to read the next book...but let me tell you what kind of racket is going on here!

Scholastic created this series to fill a gap in the market left by the end of the Harry Potter series - and boy have they done a first rate job. Each book at regular price is $13 - and all hardcover. They have to be hardcover because inside each cover are six clue cards. You use these to play the online game in search of the 39 clues. Why must you play the online game? Because so far in 6 books, Amy and Dan have only found 6 clues and been given 1 or 2 more. Do the math - that rate is not going to get us to 39 clues, people!

Each set of cards has a code at the bottom that you type into the website. That's great. I thought I would save money and check the books out at the library. Some of them had been read before, but two of them were brand new. When I went to plug in the card codes, the ones from the new books were fine, but I learned that if kids had used the codes from the other books already, I couldn't use them too. That means you've got to buy the books yourself. There are also extra card packs that you can buy. Holy Schmoley! I figure you could easily spend upwards of $200 by the time this is all said and done. Way to go, Scholastic!

It kind of puts a damper on the excitement of the series for me. From what I've read online, Spielberg is looking to make 3-4 movies on the series, there is a board game, and the marketing continues. I wonder how long Scholastic et al will be able to ride this bankable wave!