Lucy Spagnola is excited to receive an invitation to the Wildlands Safari Escape Challenge, but is leery of attending because her last visit ended badly, with her freaking out on an observation platform. Her sister Alex is an intern at the site, and encourages her to go, because there were very few students asked. The competition pits the middle school age students against the interns, competing for a spot in the intern program, which Lucy still really wants despite her fears. Lucy feels inadequate, and often compares herself to her sister or mother. Along with Adam, Amelia, Isaac, Emma, and Amelia, Lucy sets off to compete in the escape room style competition, with lots of puzzles. There are even notes reminding readers to grab a pencil and paper to work on cryptograms, anagrams, crossword, and other puzzles. While traveling around the Wildlands looking for clues, the children start to realize that Tabora, an elephant calf, has been separated from her mother and appears to be chased by men from the neighboring Happy Time Farms. Will Lucy be able to overcome her anxiety in order to work with the other competitors to solve the puzzles and save the calf? There are many footnotes explaining a variety of topics.

Richards, who also wrote 15 Secrets to Survival (2023), does a good job at portraying outdoor adventures, and Lucy’s anxiety is very on point with current trends. I was enthralled at the setting; since Richards is from Ohio, I’m convinced that the Wildlands is modeled on The Wilds, a nature preserve for large animals that opened in Muskingum County in 1994 (https://www.thewilds.org/). I took my children there years ago, and it is a fascinating place. Since I’m not a fan of puzzles, I found that the huge number slowed down the story for me, but readers who like books like Grabenstein’s Mr. Lemoncello’s Library or Currie’s The Mystery of the Locked Rooms will love this one.

A delightfully suspenseful and intriguing story for middle graders, SURVIVE THIS SAFARI offers adventure and education, plus puzzles and riddles that readers can work through for themselves.

Such a fun puzzle story. Fun story and I will certainly return to this author no matter what age range she writes for next. You are right there completing the puzzle with the kids.