The Wright 3
By Matt Berman,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Clever kids save historic house in tepid sequel.
Add rating
A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this book.
Where to Read
Community Reviews
There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.
What's the Story?
Petra and Calder from Chasing Vermeer, finishing up their sixth grade year, are joined by Calder's friend Tommy, who has moved back to town, and the trio is not a comfortable one. Tommy resents Calder and Petra's friendship, and is sullen and rude about it.
Then their teacher, Ms. Hussey, introduces them to a tragedy in the making -- Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House is about to be cut into four pieces and sent to different museums. The kids and teacher quickly organize an effective protest that gets plenty of media and political attention.
But there's more going on at Robie House than meets the eye: strange lights, worker injuries, hidden codes, and a house that may have a mind of its own bring the trio together to solve the mystery and save the house.
Is It Any Good?
Kids who liked Chasing Vermeer will probably enjoy this sequel about unlikely friends saving a Frank Lloyd Wright house -- and solving a mystery. There are more art crimes, more clues hidden in pictures, more codes to solve, more pentominoes, more mathematical, literary, and historical connections -- more of everything that made the first book fun. But somehow it adds up to less.
The clever bits are mostly extraneous: You don't need to find the hidden pictures or decode the codes or understand pentominoes to follow the story -- none of them are integral. The author introduces interesting strands, characters, and ideas and then drops them without their having served any purpose. It's all pleasant and interesting, in a tepid sort of way, and some kids will enjoy it.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the historical background. Who was Frank Lloyd Wright, and what is the real history of the Robie Residence? Also, why does Tommy behave the way he does? If you were Calder or Petra, how would you have handled it?
Book Details
- Author: Blue Balliett
- Illustrator: Brett Helquist
- Genre: Mystery
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
- Publication date: April 3, 2006
- Number of pages: 318
- Last updated: July 8, 2015
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Read
Our Editors Recommend
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate