Mr. Summerling's Secret Code

The Treasure Troop #1

by Dori Hillestad Butler, Tim Budgen (Illustrator)

Join Marly, Isla, and Sai, three code-cracking kids on the hunt for an old neighbor's hidden treasure.

Marly always knew Mr. Summerling as her friendly neighbor living in the big, old house next-door. Sure, he walked around with a metal detector and talked about being a treasure hunter, but she didn't think much of it. But when news of Mr. Summerling's death arrives at her doorstep, Marly is brought into a treasure hunt of her own. In Mr. Summerling's will, he's left a treasure for Marly and her two classmates, Isla and Sai. The catch? They have to solve a series of riddles, puzzles, and clues to find its location. And not only that, they have to work together on it -- which Marly is not looking forward to. But with no other choice, she, Isla, and Sai set off on the hunt. Can the three kids come together to crack the code? And even if they do solve the clues... what could Mr. Summerling possibly have left them?

Genres: Mystery, Childrens, Friendship, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Disability, Chapter Books

125 pages, Paperback

Published January 19, 2021

About the author

Dori Hillestad Butler is an American author of more than 40 children's books, as well as magazine stories, plays and educational materials. Her first book, The Great Tooth Fairy Rip-Off, was published in 1997. She is known particularly for The Truth about Truman School, a 2008 young adult title focusing on the subject of cyber bullying, and for My Mom's Having a Baby (illustrated by Carol Thompson), which in 2011 appeared on the American Library Association's list of most commonly challenged books in the United States for its portrayal of conception and childbirth. Her 2010 mystery title, Buddy Files: Case of the Last Boy, won the 2011 Edgar Award for the best juvenile mystery published in 2010. Before becoming a children's author, Butler worked for three years as a page at a library.

Reviews

[Rob Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grade schoolers will love this sweet and engaging story of three kids solving a series of puzzles trying to find the treasure left to them by their mutual older acquaintance, Mr. Summerling.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book for beginning puzzlers, and those who like adventure and scavenger hunts. Author nods to older mysteries. A fun mystery that has great disability rep and teaches the power of friendship

[Joelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super fun early chapter book ideal for children interested in mysteries, adventures, and secret codes. I loved it!

[Evie Loves · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a treat! I read to my 5 year old! We loved the characters and the story kept us both interested! We are going to finish the series this summer!

[Jj · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute one for the kiddos. The 9 yo guessed some of the puzzles but the 7 yo was appropriately captivated.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Marly's next door neighbor disappears, she and three other kids her age that knew Mr. Summerling are summoned to the reading of his will. It turns out he has left them something, but instead of the will telling them what, the lawyer hands them a clue in the form of a puzzle. Marly is really missing her best friend who just moved, but she likes getting to know Isla and Sai as they puzzle out the clues Mr. Summerling left them. But where will the clues lead?

This was a very fun entry level middle grade with clues that readers can solve along with (or maybe even before) the characters. The characters are 8/9 years old and the writing is a teensy more sophisticated than most lower grade, so it definitely feels like this is meant to be for the bottom range of middle grade readers. The codes included introduce some nice types of codes that go beyond just substitution codes, which I appreciated. I like that Marly has to wear a patch for lazy eye. This is a fairly common issue for kids but I rarely see it in kid lit. One of my sisters had to patch through a huge chunk of lower elementary too and it made reading a huge challenge for her, but I think seeing a character like her in a book would've been great motivation to actually check out a book. (And for an update, my sister's eye still isn't super strong, but she did learn to like reading, and she still managed to become a competitive gymnast and can throw a scary accurate ax so don't underestimate someone with this condition!) I loved the natural development of friendship among the characters as they solved the puzzles. We need more easy middle grade books for our English language learners, so this is a welcome addition to our library. Hand this to mystery readers who want to solve the mystery before the characters.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Not all treasure is silver and gold.”

Marly’s best friend Aubrey has moved away and it’s been a tough adjustment. Marly misses Aubrey so much, emailing her though she’s not getting a response. Then, the letter arrives at their house summoning Marly to a meeting with a lawyer.

Also at the meeting is Isla and Sia. It seems Mr. Summerling, Marly’s neighbor, has left the three of them a treasure, but they must follow the clues to find it. Mr. Summerling was a treasure hunter at heart. Did he leave them money? Marly hopes it is enough to buy a plane ticket to go see Aubrey. But what she finds is that working together with Isla and Sia creates a friendship that is even better than money.

Cute. For 2nd grade and up.

[Devin Redmond · Rating 3 out of 5]

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘱 by Dori Hillestad Butler is a great early reader. I think Kindergarten through 3rd or 4th graders would enjoy solving the clues and helping find the treasures. Marly, Sai, and Isla are three kids with connections to Mr. Summerling, an older odd-duck member of their neighborhood community, who was always using his metal detector to find things. They can’t believe it when they are all called to the reading of his will, where they’re told that treasure awaits them IF they’re able to solve the clues. It’s fun and cute. Kids love Hillestad’s other series like 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘶𝘥𝘥𝘺 𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘴 (3rd/4th grade), 𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘒𝘢𝘺𝘭𝘢 (K-2), and 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘏𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘪𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 (K-3rd/4th)⁣
Fun fact: Ms. Hillestad Butler used to live in Coralville, and her son attended Coralville Central! ⁣

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marly gets a mysterious invitation to attend the reading of her neighbor's (Mr. Summerling) will. When she arrives, two other kids are there, Sai and Isla. They discover that Mr. Summerling has left something to them but in order to find out what it is, they have to solve some puzzles. Marly has to wear an eye patch because of her lazy eye, and she can't wait to get to take it off. She misses her friend, Aubrey, dearly and hopes that Mr. Summerling leaves them some money so she can buy a plane ticket to visit her BFF who has moved away. But Mr. Summerling has other things in store and true to what he once said, there are treasures greater than silver or gold.

This is a fun code breaking mystery.

[Chloe (Always Booked) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story! This is about 3 kids who all go to school together but aren't really friends until they realize they're all apart of Mr. Summerling's will. He is an old man who recently died at sea. He was an eccentric old guy who was always searching for treasure, so its no surprise to anyone that he leaves the kids a treasure hunt to find what he left them. The 3 don't immediately click, but as they go on hunting and solving riddles, they realize they may have more in common than it seems. I was trying to solve the riddles along with them and I couldn't wait to see what the surprise was. It was so fun and satisfying; we will definitely be continuing with the series.

[Mark Popovitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book to read with my 10yo daughter. She enjoyed figuring out the puzzles along with the three main characters. I enjoyed the setting in particular—kinda of a callback to a time and place where these three kids could be on their own a little more, walking around town without fear. There were no villains and the only antagonist (Mr. Summerling’s son) barely added any tension to the scene he was in before disappearing from the book for good. This was definitely a quick, enjoyable, and refreshing read that has me on the lookout for the next book in the series.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marly misses her best friend. But when her slightly odd next-door neighbor dies, he leaves a treasure to her and 2 other kids...if they can follow the clues to find it. What treasure is better than silver or gold? With actual puzzles and codes, this treasure hunt that is one that elementary school kids could realistically figure out without being too obvious for adults. It also leaves several side threads unanswered, so the series can continue.

[Allison Turkish · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever book with ingredients that make a good in-between reader, imho. There are codes and puzzles to solve, surprises, and friendship.

I appreciate that the author chose to create a character, Marley, who has amblyopia (“lazy eye”) who wears patches. Butler worked it into the story casually and kindly.

The three children in this book are developing a new friendship and the door is open for more sequels. I am interested to read them.

[Nessa]

Super adorable chapter book about a girl named Marly who is new to town and hasn't made very many friends yet. Marly has a lazy eye and has to wear a patch which makes her feel very out of place. Her neighborhood who she was close to passes away suddenly and leaves her and two other neighborhood kids clues to find his treasure!

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually a pretty good mystery! I wanted to read this book because I was excited to see a character who has to wear an eye patch due to having lazy eye which my son had. It is mentioned a couple times but not the focus of the story.

[Checkthebook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now here is a real find! I Love it. Suitable for girls or boys, with appropriate friendships, parents, and adventure. (FYI, I used to LOVE pigpen code in 4th grade. My friend Nicole and I sent tons of encoded mail to each other.)

[Anne Meester · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated the subtle literature references, the clues and codes, and the diversity of the characters (Marly's eyepatch!). It might be trying a tad too hard with all of the above, but the friendship angle was realistic and likeable.

[Miss Sarah]

An early chapter book series about three children left a mystery to solve by a neighbor they all had in common. What's he real mystery and can they solve all the clues? Cute and fun. Early elementary.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet friendship story with some fun secret code and mystery solving. Had a couple plot holes, namely, what happened to Mr. Summerling and what will happen to the rest of his property? Maybe this will come up in a subsequent volume.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have enjoyed this when I was in grade school. I am giving it four stars as that would be what younger me would have given it.

[Margaret Boling · Rating 4 out of 5]

7/16/2021 ~ A solid addition to the world of early (transitional) chapter books. Interesting puzzles/codes and an interesting mystery.

[Natalie Tate · Rating 3 out of 5]

A chapter book with puzzle elements that sleuthing kids will be happy to crack.

[Amanda Hallam-Taillon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story for moving from early chapters to more complex ones! And puzzles to solve to boot! Unreservedly recommend for all young readers.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

its so good i need to know what is next.
i love this serees.
my faforit thing is the friend ship and team work.

[Megan Scarpelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book read to Nash. This one was a cute little treasure hunting book.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a sweet read! As a parent who has two children with amblyopia, I really appreciated reading this book outloud to them. To hear of another kid struggling to wear an eye patch in a BOOK! Now, that was encouraging :-) I really appreciated the representation; it didn't take away from the story at all. Lots of riddles and puzzles throughout which has kept my older children busy writing in code and teaching their friends.

**One thing I didn't like was that the author referred to the main characters eye's as good eye or bad eye. I believe our bodies are wonderful gifts, even the parts that don't work well, and didn't want my kids to think of their eye as 'bad.' Simple fix while reading outloud, I would say weaker/not strong eye or other eye. But heads up if you give the book for your child to read on their own.