Starred Review ALA Booklist (Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)

Starred Review Great Pyramids of Snefru, chums, they're back! Yes, Jasper Dash, Boy Technonaut, and his intrepid pals e venturesome Katie and the retiring Lily turn for yet another thrilling adventure (following Whales on Stilts, 2005, and The Clue of the Linoleum Lederhosen, 2006). This time around the gang are off (via Jasper's Gyroscopic Sky Suite) to exotic Delaware in search of a ruthless band of art thieves who are plundering priceless artifacts from the monastery of Vbngoom (that would be the one that's hidden in a mountain range in northern Delaware). A mountain range Delaware? Yes, readers, this is Delaware as you've never known it, replete with towering mountains, icky squid monsters, levitating monks, and the like. After all, as Katie notes, Jasper does have a penchant for finding places that most people can't find. Come to think of it, so does Anderson, as he drolly demonstrates in yet another relentlessly imaginative and laff-filled adventure that is his own sui generis marriage of Indiana Jones and Tom Swift (is that legal in Delaware?). The invention never flags from an opening Stare-Eyes competition (Jasper can stare like nobody else) to a thrilling, concluding encounter with the Technonaut's archenemy, the interdimensional criminal Bobby Spandrell. And don't miss "Fair Delaware," the appended state song (words and music by M. T. Anderson, of course!).

Horn Book (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Jasper, Katie, and Lily (Whales on Stilts, The Clue of the Linoleum Lederhosen) again save the world. A "competitive staring" contest begins the nonsense, setting off a chain of events in which the friends help monks retrieve stolen artifacts. Anderson stuffs every scene with exotic setting details; that the mystical locale is Delaware gives the story an added layer of absurdity.

Kirkus Reviews

Metafiction at its most weirdly satisfying. Anderson began his Thrilling Tales in 2005 with a slight not-quite-200-pager called Whales on Stilts , then followed it the next year with the rather longer Clue of the Linoleum Lederhosen . Each was populated by the trio of Jasper Dash, Boy Technonaut, star of his own adventure-book series (that no one reads any more), Katie Mulligan, star of the Horror Hollow stories, and Lily Gefelty, "who observed things constantly and thought complicated things about what she saw." This far longer tome finds Jasper returning to save the mountaintop monastery where he learned martial arts in deepest Delaware. There is no way to summarize a plot that includes shards of and snarks at Eragon , Tom Swift, chick lit and sports novels, Galaxy Quest and Indiana Jones movies and so on. Extremely funny, it's for adults, who will get at least half the references, and for children, who will get the other half. Cyrus's illustrations are integral and pretty darn amusing, too. (Fiction. 9-14)

School Library Journal (Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2009)

Gr 5-8 Jasper Dash is his school's last hope in the all-important Stare-Eyes Championship against their archrivals. Alas, the Boy Technonaut's concentration is interrupted mid-match when he receives a telepathic cry for help. His team blames their defeat on Jasper's loss of focus, but he is convinced that there is something unnatural about the opposing team. With his fellow sleuths Katie and Lily, he follows the Stare-Eyes squad back to the wild realm of Delaware. Long cut off from civilization by exorbitant toll-road charges, it is a dangerous region of lofty mountains, impenetrable jungles, and exotic cities, ruled by a crazed military dictator. In the hidden monastery where the man once studied, Jasper and his friends find that his old teachers are hostages. The crooks are using the monastery's arcane powers to create an indestructible army. What can our heroes do to stop a horde of thugsespecially when the monks are vowed to nonviolence? Detailed black-and-white illustrations, reminiscent of slightly skewed medieval woodcuts, add to the exotic atmosphere. Like the chums' previous exploits, this off-the-wall parody of Stratemeyer-style series fiction features mock-heroic dialogue, breakneck chases and battles, hairsbreadth escapes, and fiendish (if rather inept) villains. Along the way, there are lots of sly digs at rah-rah sports novels, gangster pulps, and even travel guidebooks. The author frequently "breaks page" to address readers directly with side comments, hints, and suggestions. Beneath all the absurdity, there is also a quiet message about loyalty and self-acceptance. Elaine E. Knight, Lincoln Elementary Schools, IL

Voice of Youth Advocates

In this third volume of the Pals in Peril Tales, Jasper Dash (known for his courage and creative mind) is again joined by his ôchumsö Katie (who battles all forms of evil in her own life in Horror Hollow) and Lily (who runs slowly and believes she is nothing special) to battle evil forces. Eight Stare-Eyes team members from Delaware have shown up to compete against DashÆs team, and he soon realizes that the Delawareans are up to no goodùin fact, they are selling priceless items from the monastery of Vbngoom, hidden somewhere in the misty Delaware mountains. An ESP cry for help from DashÆs dear friend Drnan reveals the monasteryÆs peril, and the three friends must find the monastery before they are murdered by government spies or eaten by mountain squids. At turns campy, creative, hilarious, wacky, and downright weird, this tongue-in-cheek adventure for middle schoolers will appeal to fans of Lemony Snicket or B-grade science fiction. Poking fun at past decades with references to prior adventures (aka the Hardy Boys), and strange creatures that might be Star Wars rejects, AndersonÆs spoof is highly visual and quite plot-driven, yet somehow it works. When the author interrupts the narrative to talk to readers, it is obvious that he is enjoying the story as much as they are. For the first two books, the series was known as M. T. AndersonÆs Thrilling Tales, but the new title works better.ùMelissa Moore.