The Sultan's Tigers

February 1, 2014

Gr 4-7-In this follow-up to Island of Thieves (Houghton Harcourt, 2012), Tom Trelawney once more finds himself on a quest with his daring yet morally ambiguous Uncle Harvey. This time, the pair is reunited on the occasion of Tom's grandfather's death. When the boy is threatened by a mysterious man named Marko, he learns of some letters written by his Trelawney ancestor describing the location of a stolen tiger statue (based on the real-life "sultan's tigers" in Mysore, India)-worth two million dollars. Tom and Uncle Harvey embark on a race to get to the statue before Marko, both to satisfy the Trelawney love for adventure and to cover Uncle Harvey's debts. Fast-paced action is to be expected from this title, which has compelling, movie-poster-like cover art, but there's a lot more to it than that. As Tom explores India for the first time, he learns about the current state of affairs, especially the level of poverty afflicting the region. What could have just been an exotic thrill ride turns into a reflection on American privilege. The Sultan's Tigers is a rollicking story that works as a stand alone and is a great choice for reluctant readers, especially those looking for books with male protagonists.-Jessica Ko, Los Angeles Public Library

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2013
In Island of Thieves (2012), Tom Trelawney took off with his uncle Harvey to Peru in search of lost treasure, guided by the diaries of buccaneer Sir Francis Drake. Now they're off again. Being the middle kid in a normal Connecticut family may be one reason 12-year-old Tom is always acting out...or perhaps he takes more after his roguish uncle and grandfather than anyone realized. In Ireland to attend his grandfather's funeral, Tom is grounded and must remain at home alone. He's not bored for long, however. A stranger breaks into the house, looking for some hidden letters that Tom's grandfather had agreed to sell him. In no time at all, Tom brokers a deal with the intruder himself, then finds the 200-year-old letters. They are from a Trelawney ancestor to his wife, telling her of the fabulous treasure he has stolen and stashed away for her in India. Uncle Harvey is only too eager to finance the expedition to retrieve it, as he's in need of some new treasure himself or he will fall foul of some pretty unscrupulous characters from his past. With villains hot on their trail, they head for the nearest airport. All plot, the story presents engaging, if totally reckless lead characters; Tom's encounters with the abject poor of India provide opportunity for thought for both him and readers. Lessons both social and geographic are laid on lightly in this rip-roaring adventure. (Adventure. 9-12)

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January 1, 2014
In this sequel to Island of Thieves, twelve-year-old Tom Trelawney and his uncle Harvey again set off on a treasure-hunting, villain-evading adventure: now to India after discovering the whereabouts of an ancient, extremely valuable relic of Tipu Sultan. Cinematic and action-packed, this National Treasureesque middle-grade thriller delivers a breathless plot and a satisfying denouement.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

November 1, 2013
Grades 4-7 Lured by the promise of adventure and treasure, Tom again skips town with his unprincipled uncle Harvey. This time they follow a trail of clues to southern India to find a jeweled tiger statue buried by their ancestor Horatio in 1799. The search brings danger, friendship, arson, cultural understandingand a bit of introspection on the part of Tom. His budding maturity never fully blooms, though, and by the end of the novel, Tom ignores his punishments and slips out of the house on a new adventure. Hand this fun adventure series (Island of Thieves, 2012) to future fans of Clive Cussler.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)