Edgar Award nominee for Best Juvenile Mystery
The book is about, among other things: the strongest boy in the world, a talking cockatoo, a faulty mind reader, a beautiful bearded lady and a nervous magician, an old museum, and a shrunken head.
Blessed with extraordinary abilities, orphans Philippa, Sam, and Thomas have grown up happily in Dumfrey’s Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders. But when a fourth child, Max, a knife-thrower, joins the group, it sets off an unforgettable chain of events.
When the museum’s Amazonian shrunken head is stolen, the four are determined to get it back. But their search leads them to a series of murders and an explosive secret about their pasts.
This sensational new series—a 2016 Edgar nominee for Best Juvenile book and New York Times bestseller—combines the unparalleled storytelling gifts of Lauren Oliver with the rich knowledge of the notorious relics collector H. C. Chester.
What you will find in this book:
- A rather attractive bearded lady
- Several scandalous murders
- A deliciously disgusting Amazonian shrunken head
- Four extraordinary children with equally extraordinary abilities
- A quite loquacious talking bird
What you will NOT find in this book:
- An accountant named Seymour
- A never-ending line at the post office
- Brussel sprouts (shudder)
- A lecture on finishing all your homework on time
- A sweet, gooey story for nice little girls and boys
Learn more about the series online at www.thecuriosityhouse.com
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Publishers Weekly
07/06/2015
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls: step right up and don’t be shy. You must not—you absolutely cannot!—put this book down.” With this bit of honest advertising, so begins this captivating series opener from Oliver (The Spindlers) and Chester (a pseudonym for Oliver’s father, author Harold Schechter). A curiosity museum in financial trouble, “the only place on earth where four extraordinary children like Thomas, Sam, Pippa, and Max could fit in,” faces bigger problems after a string of accidents and murders are linked to a shrunken head in its collection. Using talents of contortion, strength, mind-reading, and knife-throwing, the four children attempt to save the only home they know, while contending with dangers lurking all over 1930s New York City, from seedy reporters to mad scientists. A quick-paced plot is bolstered by the bonds of friendship these unusual yet endearing children form as they try to solve a mystery greater—and more personal—than they ever expected. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: (for Oliver) Stephen Barbara, Inkwell Management; (for Chester) David Patterson, Stuart Krichevsky Literary Agency. (Sept.)
Pseudonymous Bosch
“Stupendous and stupefying! A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside a shrunken head. If you aren’t curious about Curiosity House, somebody must have pickled your brain and put in a jar. Read this book immediately.
Adam Gidwitz
“Step right up! Step right up! Mystery, murder, curses, and sideshow freaks! Or are they superheroes? There’s only one way to find out... Read Curiosity House! You’ll be glad you did!
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
Will have readers lining up for their tickets to the next book.
Booklist (starred review)
The continuous action, compelling mystery, and dark, brooding illustrations make this book impossible to put down. Perfect for kids who feel they’re different or those simply after a freakishly good time.
Rebecca Stead
PRAISE FOR LIESL & PO:“A gorgeous story--timeless and magical.
Seventeen.com
PRAISE FOR PANIC:“Watch out, you’ll be totally hooked!
The Horn Book
PRAISE FOR PANIC:“Retains all the tension and excitement of Oliver’s Delirium…A work with sharp corners, dark places, and considerable humanity
ALA Booklist
PRAISE FOR PANDEMONIUM:“This is a romance in the purest of senses, where just the longing for the faintest taste of love is worth the greatest of risks. Like all successful second volumes, this expands the world and ups the stakes, setting us up for the big finale.
The Guardian
PRAISE FOR PANIC:“This book is brilliant.
CNN
PRAISE FOR PANIC:“Another addicting Young Adult novel from Oliver.
School Library Journal
06/01/2015
Gr 4–6—The Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders is home to four orphans: Philipa, Sam, Thomas, and the newest addition, Max. Each child possesses an unusual skill, such as Max's knife-throwing routine, which is performed for the audience's amusement. There is an Odditorium where live performances take place and a Hall of Worldwide Wonders where unusual items selected by Mr. Dumfrey, the museum's owner, are on display. An Amazonian shrunken head is the museum's newest acquisition. When the shrunken head is unveiled at a live performance, a member of the audience passes out and later dies, solidifying the skull's reputation of being cursed. When the head is stolen, the four kids are determined to get it back—and solve the mysteries of the related deaths. From the opening sentence, Oliver grabs readers' attention, enveloping them with strong storytelling and rich language. VERDICT The first book in a new series, the various oddities, intrigues, and its quirky cast of characters are sure to captivate and become a new favorite for mystery lovers.—Helen Foster James, University of California at San Diego
Kirkus Reviews
2015-06-06
Four orphans employ highly unusual talents to solve a series of murders in 1930s New York City. Dumfrey's Dime Museum of Freaks, Oddities, and Wonders displays mummies, wax figures, depictions of grisly crime scenes, and now an amazing shrunken head, all to titillate the public. A giant, a fat lady, an elephant man, and others demonstrate their skills and amaze the customers. But the tale is centered on young Sam, Pippa, Thomas, and Max, children whose peculiar abilities set them apart from the world while joining them together into a kind of family unit. The action begins when a customer dies after seeing the shrunken head. When the head is then stolen, headlines scream the events, and suspicion falls on Dumfrey and the children. Trying to save him and the only home they know, the children find themselves ever more deeply enmeshed in difficulties as the bodies mount up and danger stalks them. The plot abounds with action and mystery, but it is filled with red herrings and detours as well as oft-repeated hints about the identity of the master villain. The four orphans' characters develop very slowly, and their interactions are repetitive and predictable, while the supporting characters, though large in number, are almost entirely one-dimensional. Much of the tale feels self-consciously trope-dependent, too reminiscent of other works and with not enough original material to carry the day. Though ambitious, this Gothic misses the mark. (Historical fiction. 9-12)
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