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From the lost Journals of the Seven Wonders saga comes the story of Burt Wenders—one of the first of the chosen kids to be marked as "The Select." In this thrilling prequel to Book 1, delve into the mystery and the magic of Seven Wonders, the brand-new adventure series from Peter Lerangis, the bestselling author of several books in the 39 Clues series.

It's the year 1894, and thirteen-year-old Burt and his father are on an archaeological expedition gone wrong. After a tumultuous boat ride, Burt and the archaeologists find themselves stranded on what seems to be a deserted island. That is, seems to be deserted until Burt starts hearing music that no one else can hear . . . and blacking out with no explanation. Maybe there is something to Burt's father's expedition after all? All but tortured by his surroundings, Burt ventures to find out. He can only hope to survive.

47 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 18, 2012

193 people are currently reading
1857 people want to read

About the author

Peter Lerangis

151 books795 followers
Lerangis's work includes The Viper's Nest and The Sword Thief, two titles in the children's-book series The 39 Clues, the historical novel Smiler's Bones, the YA dark comedy-adventure novel wtf, the Drama Club series, the Spy X series, the Watchers series, the Abracadabra series, and the Antarctica two-book adventure, as well ghostwriting for series such as the Three Investigators, the Hardy Boys Casefiles, Sweet Valley Twins, and more than forty books in the series The Baby-sitters Club and its various spin-offs.[1] He has also written novels based on film screenplays, including The Sixth Sense, Sleepy Hollow, and Beauty and the Beast, and five video game novelizations in the Worlds of Power series created by Seth Godin.[2] As a ghostwriter he has been published under the name A. L. Singer.[3]
Lerangis is the son of a retired New York Telephone Company employee and a retired public-elementary-school secretary, who raised him in Freeport, New York on Long Island. He graduated from Harvard University with a degree in biochemistry, while acting in musicals[4] and singing with and musically directing the a cappella group the Harvard Krokodiloes,[5][6] before moving to New York. He worked there as an actor[7] and freelance copy editor for eight years before becoming an author.[8]
In 2003, Lerangis was chosen by First Lady Laura Bush to accompany her to the first Russian Book Festival, hosted by Russian First Lady Lyudmila Putina in Moscow.[9][10]Authors R. L. Stine (Goosebumps) and Marc Brown (the Arthur the Aardvark series) also made the trip with Bush.[9]
Also in 2003, Lerangis was commissioned by the United Kingdom branch of Scholastic to write X-Isle, one of four books that would relaunch the Point Horror series there.[11] A sequel, Return to X-Isle, was published in 2004.
In 2007, Scholastic announced the launch of a new historical mystery series called The 39 Clues, intended to become a franchise.[12] Lerangis wrote the third book in the series, The Sword Thief, published in March 2009.[13][14][15] On March 3, 2009, Scholastic announced that Lerangis would write the seventh book in the series, The Viper's Nest.[14][16]
Lerangis lives in New York City with his wife, musician Tina deVaron, and their sons Nick and Joe.[17]

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5 stars
333 (33%)
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323 (32%)
3 stars
273 (27%)
2 stars
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26 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
Profile Image for bookishpoetess.
623 reviews75 followers
March 23, 2016
It's such a great wonder how the characters can write a journal in the midst of all the running and action and adventures they are experiencing.

The Select is about the story of Burt Wenders when he felt the different, uncurable kind of sickness and how he discovered the followers of Great Qalani. The story of Burt was a short one and I long to know how he survived or his father or how they discovered everything. But maybe the last sentence says more.

I don't recommend to anyone to read this first in the series. Read The Colossus Rises first then this one so you won't be discouraged to read the whole series because I find this one not so thrilling.
Profile Image for Joey Balbas.
24 reviews
May 2, 2013
I demand to know more about what happens to Burt Wenders! Obviously something bad happened to him but...
Profile Image for Xristiana.
89 reviews8 followers
April 10, 2024
It was very interesting and for a novella it had so much plot! I think I learned some basic things about the world and I'm ready to read the first one!!
Profile Image for Rob.
383 reviews20 followers
September 13, 2019
This short story is a prequel of sorts to the first book of the Seven Wonders series. Having been three years between reading Book 1 and now reading this prequel, I can’t draw any specific connections between the two works. Still, it was a very entertaining story and I will read through the rest of these short story Journals from the series.
Profile Image for Brenda.
974 reviews47 followers
March 10, 2013
In its entirety The Select is about 48 pages, covering a time period about 100 years before The Colossus Rises (Book one of Seven Wonders Journals). The Select ends on a cliff hanger. We can only assume that things didn't go well for Burt cause the author leaves us with "something nearby" and then "I think I hear" where the journal suddenly ends. I also read an excerpt for Book One Colossus Rises, which included the first two chapters. So, my thoughts on both books are that they are heavy on the mystery surrounding these loculi. However, I can't say that the prequel novella hooks me on to the first book in the series. The Select could have been its very own book and would have made for an interesting read on its own. In terms of whether The Select ties into the next book. I would say kind of. The subject matter is similar, boys who find themselves in interesting predicaments and appear to be about to die. It's just the jump in time periods and characters doesn't seem to tie the books together. Maybe it will in future books but again The Select would have made an interesting book all on its own. I will however be looking for the Seven Wonders series. I kinda like stories that talk about ancient worlds and I'm up for some mystery.
Profile Image for Paula Howard.
845 reviews11 followers
February 4, 2013
The Seven Wonders Journal: The Select is a short... a real teaser - especially, since the 1st book doesn't come out until Feb.

The Select takes place 100 years before Book one begins. The journal is written by 13 year old Burton Friedrich Wenders. His father has taken him on a hurried trip to sea in attempts to find a specific island. Bad weather caused the death of all but Burton, his father and two crew members.

Burton suffers from severe headaches and is father is desperate to find a cure before Burton dies. Stranded on the island, Burton runs into an ancient tribe of people who which to kill him. Burton is gifted with the ability to easily pick up on languages. He learns that the tribes believes that he must be killed to save the world.

His journal is found much later ending with his attempted escape. No one knows at this point the fate of Bert.
Profile Image for Scott.
355 reviews5 followers
September 14, 2014
An exciting short story that preludes the Seven Wonders series, The Select is all about archeological adventure. Think Indiana Jones meets Percy Jackson (in fact, with the complimentary Rick Riordan cover blurb, it's no doubt). Burt Wenders is a young boy who finds himself a castaway on a seemingly dangerous island. What we are yet to find out is why the Islanders need this boy so much, and why Burt can understand a myriad of languages that others simply cannot. Also, magic talisman? Peter Larangis' writing is suburb swashbuckling storytelling, and this was a fun, quick and quite entertaining read. Very much furthered my interest in this series.
Profile Image for Honeybee.
401 reviews15 followers
November 17, 2018
I got the eBook of this novella because it was offered free. Authors use this as a way to attract new readers to their series. For me, this isn't going to result in the desired attraction to the other books.

Written as a journal of a thirteen-year-old boy in the year 1894, The Select is a prequel for the Seven Wonders series about a bunch of boys with special powers that could destroy the world, if they are not sacrificed before they come into their abilities. Burton Friedrich Wenders has been experiencing terrible headaches. Burton thinks they are caused by some sort of illness, but his father has evidence from some ancient archaeological discovery that indicates otherwise. The elder Wenders hires a ragtag bunch of sailors to man a decaying ship to take them to a mysterious island that he hopes will hold the answers to helping his son.

On the voyage to the island, the lad is riddled with debilitating nausea and headaches, but he's able to learn the Malay language by listening to the sailors talk. His father followed a map with a frightening inscription. After a terrifying storm, they found themselves shipwrecked, with few survivors, on an island populated with monstrous beasts and priests from a strange religious order. All the while, a haunting melody reverberates in Burt's mind and he isn't sure who's madder--himself or his dad.

After being captured by monkeys, the boy was taken to the priest's lair. He instantly learned their language and asked the wizened men what this was all about. They told him that he was the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy, and that they had to kill him, or risk the destruction of the entire world. He is running for his life from these priests, when Burt is injured and resorts to desperate measures to preserve the record of his life--and impending death?--on the island.

This story is jerky and disjointed, like one of those "B" movies filmed with a shaky camera. There are more questions than answers and you really don't feel connected to the characters at all. The author is clearly trying to weave a tale of the sort you'd find in one of Rick Riordan's young adult or middle reader novels, but he doesn't nearly pull it off.

Even though this eBook is free, it's really not worth the time and trouble to read it. The series may be better, but I'm not sure this novella will provide any useful background information.
Profile Image for Cherie.
295 reviews
August 20, 2020
A very action-packed and suspenseful short story written in journal format. The journal format was a poor choice because of how the origination of the journal is set up. The main character writes the entire 40 page journal while hiding in the bushes during a chase, which I imagined lasted only a few minutes. This setup made it really hard to suspend my disbelief, especially considering how verbose the kid is.

The story itself is pretty decent, and I imagine the intended audience (juvenile readers) would really enjoy it. It wasn’t earth shattering, but it was good enough to spark an interest in reading the first full book in the series.
Profile Image for Florence Joyce Dongael.
133 reviews2 followers
October 14, 2024
Don't worry. I actually read the first book like... 2 years ago? I still have the physical copy of that. But if I'm going to be honest, I forgot the majority of the plot except for the part that they fought the enemies and actually see the Colossus moved. The first book featured a griffin(?) in there while they were in the cave. In this novella, it's monkeys. Loud and strong monkeys. That was disturbing! 😱😱 That green blood part was what confused me because I can't remember if there was something like that in the first book. Or maybe I just forgot. And the robed elderly people. Where they from the same enemy organization as that of the first book?
1 review
June 17, 2023
Great introduction to the Seven Wonders series.

Builds on the story of the main series in the form of a journal, which gives a refreshing perspective on the briefly mentioned characters from book one, Herman and Burt Wenders. Recommended to read after book one, as it uncovers some events that happened in the past. There is a good amount of additional content overall, but it could use more extra details.
Profile Image for Joaquin.
480 reviews3 followers
July 24, 2018
As much as I want to enjoy this series, I'm just not getting into it. This novella is set in 1894 and focuses on Burton Wenders, a Select.

I understood that the those who kidnapped Burton wanted to kill him, I just couldn't understand every little detail.

I'm hoping I would enjoy the next novellas because The Orphan is about Daria(?) and I like her so I'm excited to read a novella about her.
Profile Image for Rubi.
2,671 reviews15 followers
November 3, 2020
Really Interesting 😃

The story grabbed me from the beginning, and I began asking so many questions. No answers were provided but it was interesting enough to pick up book one. Hopefully I get the answers about what happened to Burt and how his dad figred things out. Who were the priests and creepy animals with green blood? I hope the series is as good as story😁
Profile Image for issacannafic.
300 reviews3 followers
March 17, 2018
Kind of just threw you into the adventure, but it was good.
Profile Image for Lab.
38 reviews3 followers
November 9, 2022
This was a nice short backstory to read, but it makes much more sense after reading all five books rather than as a prequel.
Profile Image for Rif.
279 reviews35 followers
August 24, 2013
Awalnya nggak sengaja lihat The Colossus Rises di B**ks&Bey*nd yang lagi diskon super karena sedang promo bulan fiksi -sekaligus bertepatan juga dengan bulan ulang tahunku, jadi dapat diskon member-. Nggak lama setelah beli, langsung baca, tapi entah kenapa stuck di chapter-chapter awal. Soalnya bingung, Jack McKinley itu kenapa?

Tapi setelah baca e-book gratis-nya (Seven Wonders Journals: The Select), jadi penasaran sama The Colossus Rises. Soalnya, Seven Wonders Journals: The Select udah jelasin apa dan siapa itu "The Select" (Yang Terpilih?).

Meski di prequel ini nggak ada Jack McKinley dan teman-teman supernya, tapi ada Burt Wenders. Burt ini salah satu dari "The Select", sekaligus anak dari arkeologis terkemuka yang nantinya (se-abad kemudian) berperan penting (dalam sejarah) Institut Misterius di The Colossus Rises.

Kalau ada yang tanya, "The Select itu apa?"

Jawabannya ada di perkataan R'amphos,
"We all die. We become dust; we are missed by friends and family and then forgotten. But your death will bring life. You will be prevented from doing to the world what was done to the land of Qalani.”


The Selection adalah keturunan Atlantis yang ditakdirkan untuk mati (di umur ke-13, sebelum mencapai tahun ke-14 hidupnya), demi menjaga keseimbangan dan keharmonisan dunia. Lebih tepatnya, untuk mencegah dunia kini mengalami bencana yang sama dengan yang dialami oleh Atlantis dulu.

"It is foretold that Qalani’s child will return, riding the storm. He will be dying. And die he must. Because if he tries to save himself, he will, in time, destroy the world."


Paling berkesan sama kalimatnya Burton 'Burt' Friedrich Wenders, "If he does not live, I will be alone. If he lives, how long will I?"
Profile Image for Jenn.
1,463 reviews26 followers
March 3, 2016
This is a quick short story that takes place well over a 100 years before the events of the first book, in it is a small portion of the story of Burt Wenders who's mentioned in the history classes Jack and his friends take in The Colossus Rises.

Told in journal format it's from Burt's point of view and begins during his journey to the island then ends rather abruptly without really letting the reader know what happens to Burt. Sure the suspicions are pretty clear but the format doesn't really allow for further scenes. The short story does offer a bit more history into the Select, but it also stretched the realms of believability more than the flying kids in the first book does. Sad that I find it easier to believe in living statues and flying children than I do in monkey that weave nets and kidnap teenagers or men who sound like they were some of the original residents of Atlantis which would make them over a thousand years old when the story took place. However this is the case, I thought the novel was much more believable than Burt's journal.

Because the story is so short it's hard to connect to characters other than Burt and you really only feel a small connection to him, but with the new information offered in this story the stakes of the series just became a lot higher and I can't wait to learn what happens next in this series.
Profile Image for Xander.
188 reviews102 followers
February 20, 2015
Burton Wender, 13, is on a ship heading towards an island on his father’s map. There is an incident at sea, of which only four people survive. When they reach the island it is full of mystery. But then, Burton gets kidnapped. By some crazy monkeys, that is, and taken to a little cave-like room. The man says something about sacrifice-and he’s holding a knife. Will it be the end of Burton, or will he find a way to escape? An exciting short story with very imaginative ideas, The Select gives you a head start and gives you some extra knowledge on the Seven Wonders series.

What I thought about it:

The Select is very interesting. The 30-some pages are packed with action and are exciting. I will be reading The Colossus Rises soon, and I saw the prequel and decided to read it so I can have some knowledge ahead of time. Peter Lerangis is a wonderful author. He has written for one of my favorite series, The 39 Clues and this series interested me. Overall, a great start to the series. I can not wait to read The Colossus Rises. Read more reviews at: www.mybookwormblog.wordpress.com
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Kathy.
551 reviews178 followers
April 7, 2013
The voice was uneven in points as it was supposed to be from the point of view of Burton Wenders in 1894 but kept slipping into more "modern speak". I also don't know how they survived so long with the water being able to burn skin and they moved away from where they landed so quickly.

Overall, though, it gave a little insight into what the main characters in The Colossus Rises could be facing as they try to find the cures for their illnesses.

Maria and will be tackling The Colossus Rises over the next three weeks for Batty About Books.
Profile Image for Alex.
872 reviews35 followers
February 13, 2015
This is a very short prequel that is free for ereaders for people who have read the first in the Seven Wonders series. I enjoyed this more than the actual book, perhaps because it only had so many pages to tell the story. I know I will read the second in the series, but I just don’t know when I can muster up the motivation to do so.
This short journal style story is about a young boy on the edge of dying from the curse. His father in a last chance effort to save him takes a very unsavory crew to an island that is just a rumor. A storm washes them ashore and now they have to face the horrors of the island. Will he survive his curse?
Also I totally read this forever ago and don’t remember anyone’s name. Sorry haha
Profile Image for Melissa .
310 reviews
March 25, 2013
This is a prequel to the Seven Wonders Journal. 13 year old Burt Wenders went on an expedition with his father in 1894. The voyage was much more than just archaeological like his father led him to believe. It was a dangerous mission to find an ancient healing power for a rare disease that Burt is suffering from. They arrive haphazardly at their destination after going through a storm that took down more than half of the ship's crew. The sacred island holds the key to Burt's survival, but at what cost?

Being such a short book, the pacing is fast and eventful. It's a perlious affair bursting with mystery-- a fitting teaser of things to come in the first book The Colossus Rises.
Profile Image for Antonio Luis Angelo Pimentel.
14 reviews15 followers
October 20, 2014
4.5/5 STARS

Book 0.5 of the "Seven Wonders" series.

And I can say that there's something about "The Select" that draws me to reading that series further.Something about that journal and the adventure it has told of Mr Burton Friedrich Wenders. I want to know know what happened to him.

So many questions kept rustling in my head, like what's the ancient disease, the island, and those crazy priests that were chasing Burton, that I believed will be answered by the foregoing books.

This novella is a great start for the series. Cant wait to scan the pages and set out to the adventurous stories it will unfold.


Profile Image for Jen Keyer.
269 reviews
July 28, 2013
A good little insight into two characters who are not given much insight into in Seven Wonders: Colossus Rises. I really liked having back story on the Wenders who we do not seem to get a lot of information on in the first book. It was nice to know that there was a prophecy and ideas that I knew might happen via the book. I hope that the author continues both this and the book series. I like the short read.
Profile Image for Tote.
72 reviews6 followers
August 17, 2014
The Select is the prequel to the Seven Wonders series by Peter Lerangis.

I have already read a few chapters of The Colossus Rises but opted to read this first.

Burt and his father went in an expedition hoping to find a cure for his illness. They came into a deserted island or so they thought. Will they find the cure they are looking for in this island.

I'm lost. I'll fast forward to Book 1 to find out.

4/5 stars.
Profile Image for Alyssa.
253 reviews224 followers
August 20, 2016
What the hell did I just read?!

This novella was boring as hell. I was so muddled in the first half of the book. I even though of marking it as DNF because I honestly have no idea what was going on. It's like I'm a headless chicken crossing a road. Thankfully, it did improve in the second half. I enjoyed it, a bit. But it's not enough for me to give this a high rating.

Overall, this novella didn't manage to make me want to read the Seven Wonders series.
Profile Image for Lex.
820 reviews145 followers
December 27, 2012
It's not long... And this is unfair. LOL. Cause I wanna know what happened to Burt. But sadly the Journal of Burt got missing pages. Yep, that's how it was in the end. It made me want to read the first book right now which is a bit impossible unless I got the ARC. :/

But this one's definitely on my list. Still reading the Chapter 1 preview for the first book. ;)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews

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