Valley of the Giant Skeletons (Geronimo Stilton, No. 32)

Like many of the best Geronimo Stilton stories, Valley of the Giant Skeletons combines child-encouraging examples with fun adventures to interesting places with lots of entertaining examples of Geronimo being glad that he overcomes his fears. As the story opens, Geronimo is stuck for an adventure story to write another book. Cousin Trap talks Geronimo into paying $20,000 to take Trap, his sister Thea, and his favorite nephew Benjamin with him to Mongolia to explore Great-Great-Great-Uncle Wally Stilton's treasure map. Naturally, Geronimo first has to get over his fear of flying. His focus soon shifts to the gorgeous blond rodent sitting next to him who seems most interested in Geronimo. But not everyone is who she or he seems in this story. Watch out, Geronimo! (Fans of the series will note some similarities between this part of the story and a sequence early in Four Mice Deep in the Jungle). Geronimo has promised to keep the purpose of the trip and the treasure map secret, but his traveling companion soon knows all the details. Before the book's end, you'll know that it can be dangerous to get lost in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. Children who like dinosaurs will find enough to please them in this book. I learned about a type of dinosaur that was new to me, a Tarbosaurus. The book's ending is a particularly apt one, encouraging children to place credit where credit it due. I thought that this was one of the very best books in the series. I hope your family will enjoy it as much as I have.

Trap brings Geronimo a fascinating old map of Mongolia's Gobi Desert, filled with creepy names such as Bones Lake and Mystery Mountains. Trap found the ancient treasure map in the trunk of Wandering Wally, their ancestor. When the cousins look in the trunk, they come across equipment Wally used on his many adventures, plus his diary, which is crammed with daring tales. In fact, Uncle Wally was searching for the treasure spot marked on the Mongolian treasure map when he died. Geronimo feels that, by searching for the treasure, they will honor Uncle Wally's memory (but Trap says he's in it for the money). Thea and Benjamin join Trap and Geronimo on their trip. During the plane rides, Geronimo is a bit distracted by a beautiful blonde mouse who appears to be headed in the same direction. Soon, Geronimo finds out that she is Karina von Fossilsnout, a museum director. He can't help but confide in her about their search. But when Geronimo calls his friend Petunia, she informs him that Dr. von Fossilsnout hates to travel. The next day, Dr. von Fossilsnout is nowhere to be found. Can this ominous turn of events spell disaster for their treasure hunt? VALLEY OF THE GIANT SKELETONS is another enjoyable Geronimo Stilton adventure, with the series' trademark humor and fur-raising situations (like being lost in the desert without a guide, food, water or car! Yikes!). In addition, the book is packed with fascinating facts about the Orient Express, Mongolia and dinosaurs. And, as always, Geronimo revels in meeting new friends and being with his family.

Not only does my son love this book, but I really enjoy reading it to him! It's interesting, funny and informative.

I got this book to read to to my four year old as an introduction to chapter books. Just as I hoped, he was wiggly with anticipation to read each night and would beg for "just one more" chapter. (They are very short chapters.) The characters are funny, intelligent and easy to relate to, the back story is well thought out. I got a kick out of all the "mouse" changes to words to make them more appropriate for the mouse world. My son loves maps and poured over the maps included in the back of the book. I had gotten this book due to the dinosaur aspect, but was happy to learn about more than just a dinosaur. In this book, Mongolia was described in detail and did not talk down to the reader at all, which I appreciate for both him and myself! I plan to not only keep this for when he starts reading on his own, but also to get more of this series now! I look forward to reading more of Geronimo's adventures!