WHODUNNIT????

Samuel Westing, an eccentric millionaire dies, and sixteen of his heirs are called together for the reading of the will. But instead of learning what each will inherit, they are instead given clues to a puzzle, paired off, and learn that the first one to solve the puzzle inherits it all.

The book follows the twists, turns and surprises of the heirs as we learn just how they are related to Samuel Westing and each other, and uncover the secrets that bind each of them. The unfolding of each personality is particularly interesting.

This book was assigned reading for my daughter's seventh grade literature class, and they loved it. The reading was fast and fascinating, and trying to solve the puzzle along the way was a painless and fun way of teaching logic and reasoning. More children's books should be this engaging.