MORRIS FLIP SOUND MACHINE (THE POTTS-ABILITIES)

A boy with autism helps discover a lost treasure and foil aspiring money printers in this third installment of a children’s book series.

Just finished with the third grade, Morris Flip overhears two men hatching a plan to create a summer camp on the Mortimer Potts estate, where a treasure in jewels is rumored to be hidden. Promising a big reward, they’ll enlist campers to search—but will actually split the valuables and skip town. While Morris is a master at mimicking sounds, he has autism and is nonverbal, so the plot remains secret. Eager elementary school campers include the Skinks sisters, Bluebell and Bonnie, and their friends Mitzi Mufflin, Melody Wu, and Hoops Russell. Some doubt Bonnie’s ability to navigate forest paths in her wheelchair or blind Mitzi’s ability to get around with her cane, but both make it work. Meanwhile, Morris overhears yet another plot. Mr. Skinks’ factory is testing a new press for printing government money. Two workers plan to print themselves a fortune while distracting everyone by faking a crisis at the summer camp. Various adults, including an inventor, a secret agent, a self-styled duke, and a hapless school principal, find themselves embroiled in the ensuing chaos while Morris becomes an unexpected hero. In this latest volume of her Potts-Abilities series, Cooper tells another very entertaining story, with many hilarious scenarios (such as a string of mishaps for the principal) and some nice twists. She shows the strengths of her diverse characters, who are funny and charming, while not discounting the challenges they face. Coincidence plays perhaps too large a role, but it’s all part of the fun. As in the previous installments, Santucci supplies lively monochrome illustrations that deftly capture the players’ varied personalities and appearances.

A delightful, hijinks-filled adventure that spotlights characters with different abilities.