Samantha Spinner and the Perplexing Pants: 11/22/21

Samantha Spinner and the Perplexing Pants by Russell Ginns is the fourth book in the Samantha Spinner series. Nipper's Yankees are a few short games away from being forced to disband. Meanwhile Samantha and her father will team up to rescue Uncle Paul, kidnapped by SNOW.

The sibling rivalry that hindered the siblings' progress in Samantha Spinner and the Spectacular Specs (2019) has been worked through. While they don't completely agree on things and don't always understand each other, they have at least learned how to compromise. I love that they've grown as characters, showing some added maturity.

Through their previous adventures, Nipper and Samantha have also learned how to work on their own. They've also learned that they can ask others for help. I hope in further books we'll see more of their extended network of helpers.

Another interesting twist to this volume is that older methods of travel are revisited. There is a mine cart railroad added to the mix but it's not the main source of travel.

Like the previous volumes, Samantha Spinner and the Perplexing Pants is situated on the road narrative spectrum. This adventure is built from the components as Samantha Spinner and the Spectacular Specs, but executed differently. Here the family (33), while working separately at times, is working towards a singular goal: rescuing Uncle Paul. Their destination is again a city (00) and their route is again the railroad as represented by a variety of transportation methods.

There's a fifth book in the works where the siblings will go against the HEAT. The title and release date, though, haven't been announced yet.

Five stars

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