The Quest of Danger is the skeleton key for reluctant readers

I know Spy School. That is the go-to mglit book series written by author Stuart Gibbs that makes kids want to read. I knew of the Once Upon A Tim book series that’s also written by him. In the liner notes for all of those books, it lists all the author’s other books, which I had also read, except for that series. The Quest of Danger is book number four in the Once Upon A Tim series and I understand the hype now.

When I was in elementary and middle school I was as reluctant a reader as you’d find. I remember in fifth grade the only thing that got me to read a book was a competition that the teacher held. The only prize was that you got to pick the game the next time that the class had indoor recess. It’s the kind of competition that only has currency in elementary school, but it certainly lit my fire. However, back then the pool of books that spoke to reluctant readers was very limited, and even then I wasn’t one to go swimming. I did read comic books, specifically The Pink Panther, Marvel Team-Up, and Action Comics.

If that same situation were happening now or I somehow found myself trapped in my ten-year-old body with the lifetime of memories that I had accumulated, I would run a full speed to find a copy of The Quest of Danger. This book and I can only assume that the three preceding books in the Once Upon A Tim book series have the irreverent sense of humor, brevity, and manic happiness that certain young readers crave.

Each chapter in The Quest of Danger is approximately nine pages long and most of them end with a cliffhanger that’s immediately solved. There are very funny illustrations on most two-page spreads with some of them occupying the entire page. It’s not just that the illustrations are present in the book, it’s that they’re funny, run with movement, make you laugh, and provide a pause to those reluctant readers, lest they figure out that they’re actually (gasp!) enjoying reading a book.

The action and humor start on the very first page of The Quest of Danger. Readers will see Tim, Princess Grace, Belinda, Ferkle, and Rover in a small rowboat. They’re tied up, unable to move, and are about the go over a very large waterfall. There’s a brief flashback so that first-time readers can get up to speed on Tim, who he and his friends are and how regretful they all are as to the fact about their pending doom as the first quarter of the boat starts to go over the falls.

The chapters in The Quest of Danger move impossibly fast and that’s a great thing for its target audience. Even though they’re around nine pages long, they’re complimented with illustrations, so the actual reading count is around five pages, with slightly oversized text. The book’s pacing, with the cliffhanger and immediate payoff, is punctuated with sight gags, funny onomatopoeias, and various text layouts that make the funny funnier.

It’s a book that is immediately approachable to ages seven through 14. Those on the older scale will find it more of a comfort food type of reading. They won’t find the reading challenging, but what those ages might not realize is that the repetition of reading, the habit of reading something, even if it’s too easy for you, is still key towards making your big brain even bigger.

With The Quest of Danger, it’s the combination of all of the aforementioned things that makes it such a slam dunk for readers aged eight and up. Those who like to read will find the book hilarious. Those reluctant readers will be hesitant at first, because…it’s a book, but will be sucked in like an enjoyable black hole of literary fun. Assuming that this is their first Once Upon A Tim book they’ll wonder when the next one will come out, realize that there are three books before The Quest of Danger, and jump headlong into them, by which time they’ll be ready for Giibs’ mglit series, Spy School.

The Quest of Danger is book 4 in the Once Upon A Tim series by Stuart Gibbs, with illustrations by Stacy Curtis and is available on Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.

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