Stuart Horten, an only child who is slight in stature, is forced to move to a small town during the summer - which, he points out, is the worst time to move as he knows no one and will be bored. His father, a word hound and creator of crossword puzzles, and his mother, a scientist, have never really involved themselves in Stuart's comings and goings. This lends itself perfectly to Stuart's situation when he happens upon a clue left for his father from Stuart's great-uncle Tony, a magician. Fortunately for Stuart, his father wasn't the 'right sort of boy' for the task; Stuart though, is just the sort of boy for this adventure in the seach for his great-uncle's workshop full of magic and mechanisms. Stuart will have to keep out of the prying eyes of the snoopy triplets next door, April, May, and June.

Full of mystery and fun and quirky characters, Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms: Magic, Mystery, & a Very Strange Adventure is sure to delight the mid-upper level elementary readers. The scavenger hunt-like mystery Stuart embarks on is written clearly making it easy for the reader to solve along with Stuart. There are just the right amount and type of characters to make the story really come together. I imagine a child would love to read of Stuart's puzzles and clues and his dodging of prying eyes.

Really, fun stuff.

I enjoyed this tale of a kid whose great-uncle was a magician who disappeared, and the kid embarks on a quest to solve the puzzle. Quirky characters, funny moments, very enjoyable. And while it occurs in Britain, there's no horrible Britishisms for American kids to get frustrated by or turned off.

This book filled me with curiosity, and I rather enjoy being filled with curiosity. After reading "The Invention of Hugo Cabret", I had wondered if any other book would provide the same brand of curiosity; "Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms" did not disappoint. I recall reading the whole book in just two sittings, and under twelve hours; it was a delight to read of all the coin operated mechanisms and how they fit into the story. Though things were a bit hazy at times, everything had worked out in the end. This is a title that will definitely keep kids interested in reading.

I liked it. Cute and light. Young boy goes on an adventure to find his great-uncle's workshop full of magic tricks and illusions. Everything was entirely too coincidental, but it was a fun little story that sucked you into his world. I may look for more books by this author because of her lightness and style. Fun fast read.

Stuart Horten was in for a big surprise, when his parents informed him that they were moving. This was not good for Stuart. Summer time was about to start. This is definitely, not the right time to move for a ten year old, when school is out and he is the new kid. Who will he play with? With there is always his next door neighbors…the Kingley triplets…April, May, and June. They are quite interested in Stuart. Stuart finds a grand adventure when his stumbles upon a message from his Uncle urging Stuart to find his secret workshop. His uncle was a wonderful magician.

I have an enjoyable time reading this book. This book made me feel like a little kid again. I was really trying hard to guess what Stuart’s Uncle was trying to tell him in his crypt messages and figure out the clues before Stuart did. Alas, this did not happen. Although, I had fun trying. At first, like Stuart, I was annoyed by the Kingley triplets but as I got to know them, I found they grew on me. Of course, April more because she had more face time in this book than her two sisters. Stuart shined in this book. He was shy and kind of nerdy but he was in his element trying to solve the riddle of his uncle’s workshop. I am interested to see what next adventure Stuart finds himself in.

Good book. Quirky and mysterious and old fashioned, with a little real magic and a lot of stage magic.

Adorable little mystery book. Very similar to The Name of This Book Is Secret, but I liked this one better. Plus the illustrations are fantastic.

This was a mildly entertaining middle grade. Quite charming in its own way but wasn't rushing to pick it back up after I had put it down. 3.5 stars.

A lovely and somehow old-fashioned adventure tale. Somehow reminiscent of Enid Blyton... As well as the plethora of games you can get now where you investigate various settings, find clues, use them to unlock new rooms...

This is a Carnegie 2012 shortlisted tale and very much aimed at the lower end of the age bracket: the main character Stuart is 10 years old and that gives a strong clue as to it's intended audience. Some older readers may find it a little light. Personally, I started reading it at four o'clock and had finished it by nine o'clock, having made tea in the middle!

Stuart is made to move homes at the start of the summer holidays because his mother has a new job. Aside from mild annoyance, don't expect family angst or emotional trauma from that fact! He moves to his father's home town of Beeton: quiet, Midlands and rather dull. There he discovers that his Great Uncle was a stage magician (why wouldn't his dad have said before?!) and had given his father a money box years before. Opening the money box, Stuart discovers a horde of old three penny pieces which then inadvertently lead him onto a trail of clues to discover his long lost secret magic workshop. There are friends made along the way; enemies thwarted; clues deciphered; perhaps even true magic discovered.

Small Change ... was, I felt, a good read. Younger readers will enjoy it and I am sure there will be a number of people for whom this is the book that turned them on to reading.

A good book however demands that the reader give it time; a good book has me reaching for a pen to highlight and annotate. The margins of Small Change ... are - in my copy at least - as clean as the day it left the print run!