What do you think?
Rate this book
The Boxcar Children Great Adventure #2
The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll
When Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny boarded a train to help the Reddimus’s Society return a stolen treasure, they didn’t plan on traveling around the world. But after a close call with the society’s archrivals — the Argents — it’s now up to the Boxcar Children to return the remaining six artifacts to their rightful homes.
As the children travel through Egypt, Kenya, England, and Italy, can they stay one step ahead of those trying to sabotage their plans?
As the children travel through Egypt, Kenya, England, and Italy, can they stay one step ahead of those trying to sabotage their plans?
ebook
First published April 1, 2017
63 people are currently reading
129 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
February 7, 2017
I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
It's a bit difficult to write this review as I'm trying to retrieve my eyeballs that have rolled out of my head.
Grandfather Alden really needs to have a conversation with Social Services at this point. If you're letting your 6, 10, 12, and 14 year old grandchildren hop around the world to help some organization in some artifact returning/stealing ploy without a guardian, perhaps some thing needs to be examined. They go from New Mexico to Cairo to Nairobi to Stonehenge to Rome.
Also, the Alden kids are stuck in the same time warp as the BSC. They have somehow solved many many mysteries thru many seasons but haven't aged at all. But technology has finally caught up. They use laptops and Facetime. Figures the Aldens would be Apple users.
The adults in this book can't figure out simple riddles. And all if them seem fine trying to deal with dangerous artifact thieves with children.
The earlier books were believable in the sense that they often got caught up in smaller mysteries in the location they were at. This is just absurd.
At least there's educational value to the traveling they do. Even if it is superficial and almost offensively stereotyping each place.
1.5 rounds to 2 stars.
It's a bit difficult to write this review as I'm trying to retrieve my eyeballs that have rolled out of my head.
Grandfather Alden really needs to have a conversation with Social Services at this point. If you're letting your 6, 10, 12, and 14 year old grandchildren hop around the world to help some organization in some artifact returning/stealing ploy without a guardian, perhaps some thing needs to be examined. They go from New Mexico to Cairo to Nairobi to Stonehenge to Rome.
Also, the Alden kids are stuck in the same time warp as the BSC. They have somehow solved many many mysteries thru many seasons but haven't aged at all. But technology has finally caught up. They use laptops and Facetime. Figures the Aldens would be Apple users.
The adults in this book can't figure out simple riddles. And all if them seem fine trying to deal with dangerous artifact thieves with children.
The earlier books were believable in the sense that they often got caught up in smaller mysteries in the location they were at. This is just absurd.
At least there's educational value to the traveling they do. Even if it is superficial and almost offensively stereotyping each place.
1.5 rounds to 2 stars.
June 22, 2025
This was the second book my nephew wanted to read for book club. He wants me to read the whole series! I'm having him read James and the Giant Peach.
This was a fast paced book with a lot of travelling and historical sites. It's a great book to help kids learn about famous places and history. These boxcar children are pretty impressive--they traveled to 4 countries in like a week and have so much energy. Grandfather really lets them have their independence. The ending was a cliffhanger, so I'm excited to read book three!
This was a fast paced book with a lot of travelling and historical sites. It's a great book to help kids learn about famous places and history. These boxcar children are pretty impressive--they traveled to 4 countries in like a week and have so much energy. Grandfather really lets them have their independence. The ending was a cliffhanger, so I'm excited to read book three!
July 12, 2017
I caught a lot of typos in this. Oops. But, still a fun continuation of the series, I suppose.
May 21, 2022
This was the first chapter book that Charlie (largely) read to me! I love that it introduced him to places around the world. I hated that it ended mid-story!
January 2, 2017
The Aldens Go Global
The deal here is that the four Alden children have been selected by a secret society to travel the world returning recently recovered stolen artifacts to their rightful owners. The hook is - while the Aldens have a duffel bag full of artifacts, they don't know exactly what they are or exactly to whom they should be returned. So, they have to decipher riddles and collect and interpret clues in order to identify and return the items. (This is the second book in the five book mini-series that tells the full story.)
Apart from the Aldens, the book series involves a pretty extensive cast of characters. The society good guys are from the Silverton family. The villains are the Argents. We have Silvertons helping from the U.S. and traveling with the Aldens. We have other society agents touring the kids around and also helping to protect them. We have the bad guys. We have some random FBI and similar visiting characters. Then we have a set of characters, (usually a kid and a few adults), involved with each artifact and each location. Plus the Alden family supporting characters. And, people keep disappearing and reappearing under curious circumstances. This can all be a bit overwhelming. Each book starts with a recap of the previous book, but you really have to read the series in order if you want to follow all of the action.
On the plus side, each artifact adventure is like a discrete episode, although they are tied together by a few overarching mysteries and a few continuing story lines. So, you get a Cairo adventure, then Nairobi, then Stonehenge, then Rome - and that's just this Book Two. At each stop we get a brief tour, a local-flavor adventure, some background facts and some local color. It's actually a pretty nice little mini-tour. On top of that, lots of the clues and puzzles involve facts and dates specific to the place, so you end up with even more background.
The upshot is that the global nature of the adventure, the individual artifacts, and the continuing good guy/bad guy conflict all serve to freshen up and energize the series, without detracting at all from the continuing appeal of the Alden siblings. A nice addition to the canon.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book in exchange for a candid review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
The deal here is that the four Alden children have been selected by a secret society to travel the world returning recently recovered stolen artifacts to their rightful owners. The hook is - while the Aldens have a duffel bag full of artifacts, they don't know exactly what they are or exactly to whom they should be returned. So, they have to decipher riddles and collect and interpret clues in order to identify and return the items. (This is the second book in the five book mini-series that tells the full story.)
Apart from the Aldens, the book series involves a pretty extensive cast of characters. The society good guys are from the Silverton family. The villains are the Argents. We have Silvertons helping from the U.S. and traveling with the Aldens. We have other society agents touring the kids around and also helping to protect them. We have the bad guys. We have some random FBI and similar visiting characters. Then we have a set of characters, (usually a kid and a few adults), involved with each artifact and each location. Plus the Alden family supporting characters. And, people keep disappearing and reappearing under curious circumstances. This can all be a bit overwhelming. Each book starts with a recap of the previous book, but you really have to read the series in order if you want to follow all of the action.
On the plus side, each artifact adventure is like a discrete episode, although they are tied together by a few overarching mysteries and a few continuing story lines. So, you get a Cairo adventure, then Nairobi, then Stonehenge, then Rome - and that's just this Book Two. At each stop we get a brief tour, a local-flavor adventure, some background facts and some local color. It's actually a pretty nice little mini-tour. On top of that, lots of the clues and puzzles involve facts and dates specific to the place, so you end up with even more background.
The upshot is that the global nature of the adventure, the individual artifacts, and the continuing good guy/bad guy conflict all serve to freshen up and energize the series, without detracting at all from the continuing appeal of the Alden siblings. A nice addition to the canon.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book in exchange for a candid review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
June 27, 2017
Title: The Boxcar Children - The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll
Author: Gertrude Chandler Warner
Publisher: Albert Whitman Company
Published: 4-1-2017
Pages: 160
Genre: Children's Fiction
Sub-Genre: Amateur Sleuths; Geography & Cultures; Africa; Europe & Russia
ISBN: 9780807506998
ASIN: B06XSPKK72
Reviewed For NetGalley and Albert Whitman Company
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: 4.5 Stars
The Boxcar Children are a series I have shared with my nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews. In another year or so I can carry on with yet another generation.. This little mini series offers me a chance to capture the enhusiasm I always felt when I devoured the series.
The Alden children have joined with a secret society to search out artifacts that have been lost and stolen and return them from where they were taken. The agent they were to meet in Egypt fails to show up to tell them what their mission is. Clues on a piece of papyrus scroll lead them in the right direction. To deliver an ancient pharaoh statue to the pyramids.
It is rare that a series of books can pass the test of time and The Boxcar Children is one of them. The Alden children appeal to the readers. With four of them there is a personality the reader can identify with..
My rating of "The Boxcar Children - The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll" is 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XSPKK72/...
B&N Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
GoodReads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
The Reading Room Link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
Twitter Link: https://twitter.com/DelAnne531/status...
Author: Gertrude Chandler Warner
Publisher: Albert Whitman Company
Published: 4-1-2017
Pages: 160
Genre: Children's Fiction
Sub-Genre: Amateur Sleuths; Geography & Cultures; Africa; Europe & Russia
ISBN: 9780807506998
ASIN: B06XSPKK72
Reviewed For NetGalley and Albert Whitman Company
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: 4.5 Stars
The Boxcar Children are a series I have shared with my nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews. In another year or so I can carry on with yet another generation.. This little mini series offers me a chance to capture the enhusiasm I always felt when I devoured the series.
The Alden children have joined with a secret society to search out artifacts that have been lost and stolen and return them from where they were taken. The agent they were to meet in Egypt fails to show up to tell them what their mission is. Clues on a piece of papyrus scroll lead them in the right direction. To deliver an ancient pharaoh statue to the pyramids.
It is rare that a series of books can pass the test of time and The Boxcar Children is one of them. The Alden children appeal to the readers. With four of them there is a personality the reader can identify with..
My rating of "The Boxcar Children - The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll" is 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XSPKK72/...
B&N Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
GoodReads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
The Reading Room Link: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
Twitter Link: https://twitter.com/DelAnne531/status...
May 5, 2019
I LOVED the Boxcar Children growing up, and I even enjoyed revisiting Book 1 when it was on the Battle of the Book list a couple years ago.
I don’t remember how I got this book, probably from free books from Scholastic, but it was sort of nauseating to read and completely ridiculous.
I’m sorry, but sending children, including a six-year old, out to face off with international art thieves, be left in charge of priceless artifacts, and hop around Egypt on their own was more than my adult brain could handle.
Everything is modern now, but the kids haven’t aged a jot (which always bothers me). The adults are all idiots if they need a six-year old with no special skills to help them solve riddles. I get that this is written for kids, but I’ve read other children’s books of a similar idea that don’t make me eyeballs roll into my brain.
I’m not even going to put it in my class library, it’s going to the give-away pile.
I don’t remember how I got this book, probably from free books from Scholastic, but it was sort of nauseating to read and completely ridiculous.
I’m sorry, but sending children, including a six-year old, out to face off with international art thieves, be left in charge of priceless artifacts, and hop around Egypt on their own was more than my adult brain could handle.
Everything is modern now, but the kids haven’t aged a jot (which always bothers me). The adults are all idiots if they need a six-year old with no special skills to help them solve riddles. I get that this is written for kids, but I’ve read other children’s books of a similar idea that don’t make me eyeballs roll into my brain.
I’m not even going to put it in my class library, it’s going to the give-away pile.
February 27, 2019
Now the Aldens are headed to Egypt to see what exciting things await them there as they continue to put missing artifacts back into the proper hands. There is plenty of exciting chases and camel rides going on. I liked this book.
January 23, 2017
*Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
August 28, 2022
DANG IT. I HATE when I can't keep things straight. (In this case, the dates for when I read this book.)
AHHHHHH. DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE COVER ART AND HOW BEAUTIFUL THE DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS ARE!!! IT WILL SAY "GERTRUDE CHANDLER WARNER" WROTE THIS BUT IT WAS REALLY WRITTEN BY DEE GARRETSON. YEP. YOU HEARD ME RIGHT.
DEE GARRETSON. The woman who wrote a book that I absolutely hated. Ugh.
Honestly, this is like the first time that I actually wish there was a better introduction into the sequel then just diving straight into the story.
I didn't like this book AT ALL. The writing was soooooo boring and had many mistakes and spelling + grammatical errors throughout.
Each "riddle rhyme" was super simple to solve and quite obvious from the beginning.
I kept confusing the Alden children with the Pevensie children (which were wayyyyy better in terms of character development) from the Chronicles Of Narnia.
The fact that the "author" rushed them around several different countries without ANY detailed information about what each one was famous for REALLY pisses me off.
You go to Egypt and don't even give a decent introduction about Islam? To England and there is zero explanation of Big Ben? To Italy and nothing about the colosseums? To- YOU GET THE POINT NOW.
And then the ghetto-ghetty way how their own personal private pilots dress is all just too much.
I wish Ih ad read the first book SO badly. Literally half the time through the story (sorry, ignore that, I meant the ENTIRE time) I had no clue who was who and what was going.
Also, why are KIDS delivering SUPER TOP SECRET special artifacts??? I GET that it's about children FOR children- but where is there reality here people??? THE REALITY???
This book was so overdue, and that fact that it took me this long to get to it and finally write a review, is pretty shameful.
AHHHHHH. DO NOT BE FOOLED BY THE COVER ART AND HOW BEAUTIFUL THE DRAWINGS AND ILLUSTRATIONS ARE!!! IT WILL SAY "GERTRUDE CHANDLER WARNER" WROTE THIS BUT IT WAS REALLY WRITTEN BY DEE GARRETSON. YEP. YOU HEARD ME RIGHT.
DEE GARRETSON. The woman who wrote a book that I absolutely hated. Ugh.
Honestly, this is like the first time that I actually wish there was a better introduction into the sequel then just diving straight into the story.
I didn't like this book AT ALL. The writing was soooooo boring and had many mistakes and spelling + grammatical errors throughout.
Each "riddle rhyme" was super simple to solve and quite obvious from the beginning.
I kept confusing the Alden children with the Pevensie children (which were wayyyyy better in terms of character development) from the Chronicles Of Narnia.
The fact that the "author" rushed them around several different countries without ANY detailed information about what each one was famous for REALLY pisses me off.
You go to Egypt and don't even give a decent introduction about Islam? To England and there is zero explanation of Big Ben? To Italy and nothing about the colosseums? To- YOU GET THE POINT NOW.
And then the ghetto-ghetty way how their own personal private pilots dress is all just too much.
I wish Ih ad read the first book SO badly. Literally half the time through the story (sorry, ignore that, I meant the ENTIRE time) I had no clue who was who and what was going.
Also, why are KIDS delivering SUPER TOP SECRET special artifacts??? I GET that it's about children FOR children- but where is there reality here people??? THE REALITY???
This book was so overdue, and that fact that it took me this long to get to it and finally write a review, is pretty shameful.
January 30, 2021
The kids get to do more international traveling and we meet an old friend.
As someone who shipped Carter/Jessie (later in the og series when she was OF AGE), I understand why they did this. But it hurts :(
As someone who shipped Carter/Jessie (later in the og series when she was OF AGE), I understand why they did this. But it hurts :(
July 27, 2021
The Boxcar kids are tapped by a secret society to help return artifacts to the rightful by giving them clues to find and identify. They get to travel and learn facts about different locations. Artwork is terrific!
March 18, 2024
Everyone says these books can be standalone I’m going to disagree with that. The mystery wasn’t solved at the end, and I didn’t know who the characters were at the beginning there was not enough description
December 27, 2024
(5☆ Would recommend & would read again)
I loved the Boxcar Children books as a kid. I really enjoyed reading this book & I like how it is a part of a mini series. The storyline is great & it has great a great sense of adventure & suspense. Would recommend.
I loved the Boxcar Children books as a kid. I really enjoyed reading this book & I like how it is a part of a mini series. The storyline is great & it has great a great sense of adventure & suspense. Would recommend.
May 31, 2018
great
August 7, 2018
Enjoyed the story but still bugs me that noone ages.
April 24, 2019
I don’t really enjoy these. I wish the mystery was an event to solve. Been reading the first two out loud with my boys but I’m hoping they will get distracted so we won’t go onto the next one
November 17, 2019
This is the second in this children's series. It is good at explaining various aspects of history and culture in Egypt and some other countries.
October 14, 2020
It was exciting.
May 20, 2021
Another fun installment of the mystery series within a series. I love that these give little facts about different countries. My girls have loved them.
August 5, 2022
I prefer the actual main series
February 29, 2024
The Boxcar Children travel on their second journey to deliver an artifact. They ride camels and get to see a pyramid, but can they return the artifact before the enemy gets it?
February 1, 2025
VERY fast-paced, but more charming than the previous book in this miniseries and more like the main body of the Boxcar Children series.
March 25, 2017
Book #2 of the Boxcar Children's Great Adventure has puzzling riddles, priceless historical artifacts, and an enemy in the race who just won't stop chasing the kids! Young readers who enjoy the 39 Clues series or a storyline somewhat like the National Treasure movies, would like this series too. The book raises some good questions and answers that pertain to learning about our world's history, and the people who are native to different areas of the globe, all while packed into a fun mystery adventure. I think I would have preferred if the children could have spent more time in just one place to really get to know the people there better and learn more in one area, because their visits are cut really short.
What I like? The Boxcar Children (and the reader too!) get to learn about cool facts about history and geography, and the kids have some pretty neat experiences in the countries they visit. In fact, this particular book may just be my favorite of the 5-part series, since the Aldens got to visit some of my favorite places in this one volume. From the pyramids of Cairo to to the British landmark of Stonehenge, I was all-in for this adventure! I think my favorite part may have been the camel rides.
I would best recommend for 7-11 year old readers.
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book; I was not required to post a review.
What I like? The Boxcar Children (and the reader too!) get to learn about cool facts about history and geography, and the kids have some pretty neat experiences in the countries they visit. In fact, this particular book may just be my favorite of the 5-part series, since the Aldens got to visit some of my favorite places in this one volume. From the pyramids of Cairo to to the British landmark of Stonehenge, I was all-in for this adventure! I think my favorite part may have been the camel rides.
I would best recommend for 7-11 year old readers.
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book; I was not required to post a review.
April 3, 2017
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 3.5 of 5
When I was growing up and first started reading books (as opposed to picture books), The Boxcar Children were a real staple in my reading diet, so I was pleased to see that their adventures continue in this updated series.
The Alden children (Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny) are now globe-hopping with the family dog, Watch. After being introduced to a secret society that returns lost and stolen artifacts to museums and historic sites, The Boxcar Children join in the world-wide search for missing artifacts. But as if working with ancient treasures weren't already enough of an adventure, when the Aldens arrive in Cairo, the agent that they were supposed to meet has gone missing.
While the Aldens are working for the secret society, they don't know what artifact they are transporting or anything else about their 'mission' until they arrive at a destination and decode a clue. The clue here is on a papyrus scroll (hence the title), but it takes time to even get to that point as the agent is missing. Once they figure out what they have and where it's going, the Alden siblings still have to evade a thief who is following them.
These are definitely not the Boxcar Children I grew up with. These children are now world-travelers (on their own!) and much more savvy than those I read about back in the 1960's and certainly not even close to those from the 1920's! There were plenty of adventures close to home for the early Aldens, but now they travel with ease around the globe. I'm sure there's more of an educational value to this, teaching children about places like the pyramids of Egypt or Stonehenge, but it takes away from the innocence of the Boxcar Children. That's what I miss the most ... innocence. These children, with their laptop computers and they 'Facetime' don't really resemble their namesakes of old. I know this is the world we live in, but it just doesn't 'feel' right with these particular children.
But these books aren't written for me. They are written for an audience that already takes smart phones and laptops to school (yes...I know elementary school children that have laptops in school). These books are for children who already have access to Magic Tree House stories and Magic School Bus stories, where the past is approachable, as is outer space. To compete for attention, the Aldens must step up their game, and I think that the new Boxcar Children (still using the Gertrude Chandler Warner name as author) do this well. It's just a little sigh-inducing for some of us.
Looking for a good book? The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll is a new Boxcar Children book by Gertrude Chandler Warner and brings the exploring siblings in to the modern world and has them traveling all around the globe.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
When I was growing up and first started reading books (as opposed to picture books), The Boxcar Children were a real staple in my reading diet, so I was pleased to see that their adventures continue in this updated series.
The Alden children (Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny) are now globe-hopping with the family dog, Watch. After being introduced to a secret society that returns lost and stolen artifacts to museums and historic sites, The Boxcar Children join in the world-wide search for missing artifacts. But as if working with ancient treasures weren't already enough of an adventure, when the Aldens arrive in Cairo, the agent that they were supposed to meet has gone missing.
While the Aldens are working for the secret society, they don't know what artifact they are transporting or anything else about their 'mission' until they arrive at a destination and decode a clue. The clue here is on a papyrus scroll (hence the title), but it takes time to even get to that point as the agent is missing. Once they figure out what they have and where it's going, the Alden siblings still have to evade a thief who is following them.
These are definitely not the Boxcar Children I grew up with. These children are now world-travelers (on their own!) and much more savvy than those I read about back in the 1960's and certainly not even close to those from the 1920's! There were plenty of adventures close to home for the early Aldens, but now they travel with ease around the globe. I'm sure there's more of an educational value to this, teaching children about places like the pyramids of Egypt or Stonehenge, but it takes away from the innocence of the Boxcar Children. That's what I miss the most ... innocence. These children, with their laptop computers and they 'Facetime' don't really resemble their namesakes of old. I know this is the world we live in, but it just doesn't 'feel' right with these particular children.
But these books aren't written for me. They are written for an audience that already takes smart phones and laptops to school (yes...I know elementary school children that have laptops in school). These books are for children who already have access to Magic Tree House stories and Magic School Bus stories, where the past is approachable, as is outer space. To compete for attention, the Aldens must step up their game, and I think that the new Boxcar Children (still using the Gertrude Chandler Warner name as author) do this well. It's just a little sigh-inducing for some of us.
Looking for a good book? The Clue in the Papyrus Scroll is a new Boxcar Children book by Gertrude Chandler Warner and brings the exploring siblings in to the modern world and has them traveling all around the globe.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews