"I have an idea. Why don't you give us some food and tell us what this is all about?" ~ Kate, The Mysterious Benedict Society
Kate Wetherall is a member of the Mysterious Benedict Society. She is very athletic and spent the early part of her life in the circus. She is known for her bucket that dangles on her waist wherever she goes. She is very vigorous and brave. She tends to move and think really fast at times of trouble which makes the Society happy to have her.
Kate Wetherall in The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey.
Appearance[]
Kate is very tall with broad shoulders and long legs. She has long, blonde hair that she always wears in a ponytail and, according to the illustration, short bangs on her forehead and blue eyes. She is always portrayed with a red-and-white striped T-shirt and blue jeans, though it's never specified that she wears this. She is never seen without her trademark bucket. (See Kate's bucket.)
Personality[]
Kate, otherwise known as "the Great Kate Weather Machine," (Her very much wanted nickname), is a smart, albeit a fun-loving daredevil. She, according to Reynie, will "show you something dramatic and then act as if you shouldn't be surprised." (The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey, Chapter 1). It's been noted on several occasions that she thinks too quickly and relies heavily on instinct. She has great faith in her own physical abilites, and has proven her worth several times. She doesn't ever seem to be sad or worried; she keeps a very tough exterior. It's possible that she does things without thinking and then feels extreme guilt later; as implied in the third book (The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma). She can't ever seem to stop moving and she makes friends quickly and easily.
Because of her athletic prowess, it's easy to forget that Kate gets excellent
Kate Wetherall
Kate Wetherall in The Mysterious Benedict Society.
Kate Wetherall in The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma.
grades and considers school "easy." She cares greatly for her friends, even though her antics can get them into trouble, and has come up with nicknames for them such as "Connie girl" (Constance) and Sticky.
She is Milligan's daughter in every sense of the word; though she doesn't seem to have gotten her eternal cheerfullness and tendency to throw caution to the wind from him (Milligan has been known to do this, but not without great cause and as a last resort).
In the The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey, Kate at first seemed to be the only member of the Society who wasn't seasick on the M/V 'Shortcut, until Reynie discovered that she was actually embarrassed of her seasickness when he caught her going back to the Society's room after vomiting in the bathroom. She told him not to tell anyone, which implies that she's very touchy about people knowing her weaknesses to the extent of hiding them from her best friends.
Another reference to her personality is her last name, Wetherall, which can also be read as "weather all," in the sense that she can weather, or endure, all sorts of situations.
Abilities[]
Kate is athletic. She spent a good part of her life in the circus and learned the following traits:
- Acrobatics
- Animal training
- Falconry
- Efficiency
And others. She is very fast (Reynie can't imagine anyone being faster than her) and can take out men twice her size (and age). She is quite clearly Milligan's daughter. Kate also has a strange mathematical ability that lets her gauge distances with more accuracy than a surveyor. She can instantly tell, for example, when a room is six feet by six feet five inches. She can hold up to traveling quite well, being the least seasick member of the Society when riding the M/V Shortcut.
History (before the series)[]
Kate grew up with Milligan on a farm after her mother died (how she died is unknown). She later states that her only memory is of going to the mill-pond with her father and asking "Can we go to the mill again?" (hence Milligan's name). After Milligan was captured on a mission and failed to return, she was sent to an orphanage. She wasn't pleased with it and almost immediately ran away to the circus. She kept running away to the circus three times before they let her stay.
When she was twelve, Kate saw Mr. Benedict's ad in the newspaper, said "adios" to her circus friends, and hopped a train to get to Stonetown and take the tests. She actually failed the tests, but when Number Two (known by Kate as "Old Yellow Suit") was saved by Katel she was allowed to go on to the next test, thus meeting Reynie and Sticky.
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey[]
The story begins at Kate Wetherall's farm, where all the children plan to stay for a few days before setting off to Stonetown to visit Mr. Benedict, who is planning to send them on an international treasure hunt to test their skills. When they arrive at Mr. Benedict's house, they receive bad news from Rhonda that Mr. Benedict
Kate Wetherall in The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey.
and Number Two have been kidnapped by Ledroptha Curtain, the villain of the previous book and twin brother of Mr. Benedict. In his ransom letter, Mr. Curtain describes a certain "rare plant" and says he needs to know who the person "extremely close" to Mr. Benedict is, because that person has information about this mysterious plant. If this information is not provided to him, Mr. Benedict and Number Two will be in "grave danger". Constance reveals that Mr. Benedict gave her a letter before he was kidnapped, and told her to open it when the other children arrived. The envelope contains a message of greeting from Mr. Benedict, and a nonsensical riddle. In this riddle, they discover, the words are in alphabetical order. they are in turn led to a dictionary, and then a journal, in which is another nonsensical riddle. The children discern it to mean TAKE THE SHORTCUT. The children sneak off on the M/V Shortcut, the “fastest ship in the world” and find more information that takes them to a castle in Portugal. from there, hidden evidence directs them to a library in Thernbaakagen. There they learn that the “mysterious plant” is an extremely rare growth called duskwort. It has the power, when burnt, to put entire villages to sleep for hours on end. It also is a possible antidote to Mr. Benedict’s narcolepsy. Researching the duskwort, they find that no one knows what it looks like. They travel to a hotel, but are found by two of Mr. Curtain’s henchmen, called the Ten Men. However, they are rescued by Milligan, who accompanies them to find more evidence. They finally find the location of the duskwort, an abandoned island. On the island they find a delirious Number Two, who tells them where Mr. Benedict is: the top of the mountain of the island. They are ambushed by a group of Ten Men. Milligan comes to the rescue, and takes on the Ten Men. The children travel to the top of the mountain, while Milligan is backed off a fifty-foot cliff and falls onto a bed of rocks. They Discover Mr. Benedict chained to the wall in a cave. He begs them to destroy the duskwort. upon the children saying they don’t know what it looks like, he jumps up and reveals himself to be Mr. Curtain, and locks the children to the wall with the real Mr. Benedict. Mr. Curtain leaves after Mr. Benedict tells him where the duskwort is. Mr. Benedict cleverly tricks S.Q. Pedalian into unlocking their handcuffs, and they get away. Mr. Benedict falls asleep from narcolepsy, and the children are forced to carry him down the mountain. They find Milligan (extremely injured) and Mr. Benedict comes to. They race to the forest. Ten Men are surrounding them everywhere, in addition to Mr. Curtain’s amphibious vehicle being hot on their trail. Just when all seems lost, the mighty figure of the SHORTCUT races into the bay at top speed. It grounds on the shore, pinning Ten Men to the ground, and allowing the children to climb on board. after a final standoff, Mr. Curtain escapes, and the children, Mr. Benedict, and Number Two are reunited with their families.
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma[]
In the third installment of the Mysterious Benedict Society series, Reynie, Sticky, Kate, Constance, and various loved ones find themselves holed up in Mr. Benedict's house, which is teeming with security. The evil Mr. Curtain is at large and hunting for the Whisperer -- now in Mr. Benedict's possession -- so he can try again to control minds from afar. When a shady businessman shows up with false records that say he's
Kate Wetherall in The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoners Dilemma.
Constance's father, it compels Mr. Benedict to use the Whisperer to uncover her short past. Distraught and confused after all is revealed, Constance runs away, with the whole household after her -- just the distraction Mr. Curtain and his men need to steal the Whisperer and set his evil plans in motion.Of course, the rest of the Mysterious Benedict Society soon find themselves on his trail. They cover their tracks by leaving false clues for the Society, but the Society doesn't notice until too late. In complete accordance with her personality, Kate rushes headlong into Curtain's trap with Reynie, Sticky, and Constance trying to warn her. She ends up getting them all captured. Later, when they're trying to escape, they realize that Kate is the only one who has a chance. Sticky tells her to go, even if only she can get out. But Kate is seen by a Ten Man as she scouted the area. The Ten Men don't hurry as Kate runs to the Salamander. Kate finds out why, McCraken is waiting for her inside. When Kate returns to her friends, she describes what she outside. Sticky and Reynie figure that they were in a real prison that was for demolision. They were on Third Island. They plan another way to escape and come to the idea of using Constance's amazing abilities. Constance sends a message to Mr. Benedict of were they were. After concentrating hard and long, she gets an image in her head. Unsure if it was a dream, for she had fallen asleep because the image had made her relax, or a message, The Mysterious Benedict Society discuss what it meant.
Quotes[]
The Mysterious Benedict Society[]
" ' What I was going to say," Kate continued stubbornly,' is that I may not know when the Cenozoic Era was, but I wasn't born yesterday.' " page 391
" 'Is that really the best you can say? An average-looking boy? An awful lot of boys are average-looking, S.Q.!' And poor S.Q., he just kept arguing that 'this boy was especially average-looking.' "
"Reynie's face fell. 'It's not funny, Kate.'
For a moment - a fleeting moment - Kate looked desperately sad. 'Well, of course it's not funny, Reynie Muldoon. But what do you want me to do? Cry?"
— Trenton Lee Stewart (The Mysterious Benedict Society)
The Perilous Journey[]
"Good grief! They're going to call us inside soon, and Sticky hasn't even met Madge yet!"
"Who's Madge?"
"Her Majesty the Queen!"
~ Kate and Sticky, respectively
The Prisoner's Dilemma[]
"So what's your team called?" asked Kate, twisting her legs into a pretzel-like configuration, "We're called the Winmates because we're inmates who win." Kate looked back and forth at Reynie and Constance, searching their expression for signs of delight.
"You gave yourselves a name?" asked Constance.
Now it was Kate's turn to be baffled. "You didn't? How can you have a team without a name?"
— Trenton Lee Stewart (The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma)
Trivia[]
- Kate is the oldest member of the Society.
- Kate is the only member of the Society who cries more than once in the books.
- Kate is the only member of the Society who hasn't used the Whisperer.
- Kate is the only member of the Society who stands a chance of winning a fight against a Ten Man.
- Kate is the only member of the Society whose room is neat.
- She is quite famous amongst the Ten Men, as she is deemed the most dangerous Society member in direct confrontations.
- She is the only member of the Society who's never lost her patience with Constance, although she almost did in the first book.