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Review: Benny On the Case

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Benny on the Case
By Wesley King
New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2025. Fiction. 278 pages.

Eleven-year-old Benny is not like other kids his age. He lives in Newfoundland in a retirement home with his mother, his best friend is a resident there named Mr. Tom, and he was born with Mosaic Down syndrome. Because Benny has Down syndrome he was placed in a special education classroom when he started school. But even though Benny looks different his Down syndrome is entirely asymptomatic, which means he has no health, speech or cognitive disabilities. Once the teachers recognized his good grades they decided to move him to a regular classroom. Benny is both excited and scared his first day of school in a regular classroom.  As he walks up to the school the first day he meets a girl named Salma who is new to the school and to Newfoundland. The two hit it off and become friends right away.

Benny is excited to have a new friend at school, but things aren't looking so good for Starflower Retirement Home. Someone is stealing valuable items from some of the residents and the police don't have any suspects or leads. Things get even worse for the retirement home when the inspector threatens to close it down if the thefts don't stop, so Benny and Salma decide to step in and do some investigating of their own. If you are a mystery lover, you will enjoy reading about Benny and Salma and their inventive investigative skills. A delightful middle grade mystery with young sleuths who save the day and defeat the bad guys. 

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