Summary: The residents of the Sunset Towers apartment building get wrapped up in a mystery masterminded by an eccentric millionaire named Samuel Westing. After Westing is found dead, his lawyer follows Westing’s instructions and gathers the 16 people named in his will for a reading of the document. In his will, Westing outlines the rules for what he calls the Westing game. He claims he was murdered (by one of the people in the room) and challenges them to find the culprit. The person who solves the mystery will inherit the substantial Westing fortune. The 16 “heirs” do their best to decipher Westing’s clues and unravel the mystery, but one of them isn’t who they claim to be. Westing keeps the contestants (and the reader) guessing until the very end, and it takes one especially clever contestant to win the Westing game.Citation: Raskin, E. (2001). The Westing game. New York: Puffin Books.
Impression This wonderful mystery from Ellen Raskin won the 1979 Newbery, and I can see why. One of the biggest things that struck me about this book is that even though it was first published in 1978, it doesn’t feel dated at all. I started the book expecting to come across lots of technology and popular culture references that would date the book for modern readers. I was pleasantly surprised when I didn’t find many at all. (The only reference that really dates the book is Turtle listening to stock reports on a transistor radio.) The dialog and descriptions all have a timeless sort of feel that modern readers will connect with and appreciate.
Another strength of the book is pacing. Raskin reveals just enough information to help readers solve pieces of the puzzle. For example, most readers will realize the initial clues given to the heirs form the lyrics to a famous song. However, she keeps the answer to the big mystery under wraps until the very end. I am an avid mystery reader. I love trying to solve the mystery along with the characters, and I can usually figure out whodunit. The end of The Westing Game was a complete surprise to me, and it made me want to read it again so I could pick up on all the clues I missed the first time.
Review:
School Library Journal:
Another mystery puzzle for fans of Raskin’s earlier novels. This one centers on the challenge set forth in the will of eccentric millionaire Samuel Westing. Sixteen heirs of diverse backgrounds and ages are assembled in the old “Westing House,” paired off, and given clues to a puzzles they must solve— apparently in order to inherit. (Not so coincidently, most of these characters have recently moved into a new luxury apartment building behind the mansion.) So the race is on, intensified by the shifting identities and the suspicion that Westing was murdered by one of the heirs. Readers may solve the initial puzzle sooner than the characters, but the central mystery holds until the end. The heroine is 13-year-old Tabitha-Ruth “Turtle” Wexler, and she the only character that’s given more than one dimension— though most are wittily conceived that all serve admirably for this genre. Young readers will be satisfied that Turtle turns out to be the real winner and they will enjoy the process by which she learns— and earns— her reward.
Dorsey, M. A., (1978). [Review of the book The Westing Game, by E. Raskin]. School Library Journal, 24(8), 87. Retrieved from http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Uses in a library: A library could have their own version of the Westing Game. It would be a wonderful program for older elementary school or middle school students. Librarians could create their own murder mystery, scavenger hunt, or treasure hunt based on the book.
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