'' Raising Arcadia '' is a novel by

Simon Chesterman Simon Chesterman is an Australian legal academic and writer who is currently vice-provost at the National University of Singapore (NUS) and dean of the NUS's Faculty of Law and NUS College. He is also a senior director for AI Governance at AI S ...

, Dean and Professor at the

National University of Singapore Faculty of Law The National University of Singapore Faculty of Law (NUS Law) is Singapore's oldest law school. NUS Law was initially established in 1956 as the Department of Law in the University of Malaya. After its establishment, NUS Law was Singapore's only ...

. Published in May 2016, the book is the first in a trilogy. A sequel, ''Finding Arcadia'', was published in November 2016 and launched at the

Singapore Writers Festival The Singapore Writers Festival is a literary event organised by the National Arts Council. Inaugurated in 1986, the festival serves a dual function of promoting new and emerging Singaporean and Asian writing to an international audience, as well ...

. The third and final book in the trilogy, ''Being Arcadia'', was published in 2018 and shortlisted for the Singapore Book Awards.

Overview

The central character, Arcadia Greentree, is a sixteen-year-old savant, described as “aware of her surroundings in a way that sometimes gets her into trouble — and out of it again”.

Reception

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' describes the book as a young adult mystery paying tribute to

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...

. “Though overstuffed with obscure allusions and unnecessary infodumps, this series opener is pleasurably packed with clever, solvable, well-explained puzzles; hits the spot for a mystery lover.” The ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' places it in the tradition of English boarding school novels. “Fans of quirky protagonists, puzzling mysteries, and spy craft will enjoy this. A solid addition to any middle school, high school, or public library.” ''Glee Books'' rated it “highly recommended, especially for those who enjoyed the pacy intrigue and thrills of ''

The Mysterious Benedict Society ''The Mysterious Benedict Society'' is a quartet of children's books by Trenton Lee Stewart chronicling the adventures of four children, initially gathered together by the eccentric Mr. Benedict. The first children's novels written by Stewart ...

'' mysteries.

Awards

''Raising Arcadia'' was shortlisted for the Popular Readers' Choice Awards at BookFest Singapore 2016. ''Being Arcadia'', the final book in the trilogy, was shortlisted for the 2018 Singapore Book Awards.LocalBooks.sg, Singapore Book Awards 2018 Collection.
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References

{{reflist 2016 novels Singaporean novels Mystery novels Young adult novel series Marshall Cavendish books