Some of the stories in this volume are better then others, but my favorite Mysterique Sign. I perfer the novel length over the short story.

rereading June 2017 42.1 % Mysterique Sign

reread 6/14/17

I liked Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody short story quite a lot as well ( )

If you've seen the anime, you've pretty much got the story. But I am not a fan of the Island, so even this book was a little boring. BUT IT IS STILL Haruhi and worth the read. ( )

This is a mixed bag, being a collection of short stories. Some of them are very good and quite funny. The largest of them, "Remote Island Syndrome" is much better done in the anime than in the book version. I didn't like the way the mystery was solved in the book, or the behavior of the characters in a book that is going to be attractive to middle school age children. (Tenth grade students do drink sometimes when they are away from their parents, I know that, and the fact that the group decided that drinking wasn't fun because they didn't remember everything they did is admirable, but I preferred the way the story was handled in the anime without the drinking. But the real difference was the way that the mystery was solved and the addition of a potential "creation" of Haruhi's mind so that nobody she knew was the killer was an interesting twist. It made me wonder what happened on the island after they left and if she had created a mythic monster that would haunt the island for ever. A nice twist that was missing in the original.) ( )

In the third instalment of the frenetic and unpredictable adventures of Haruhi Suzumiya and the SOS Brigade, there are four short stories that cover various adventures from baseball to travelling to alternate dimensions.

In "The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya", Haruhi signs the SOS Brigade up for a baseball tournament, which they must win lest Haruhi get bored and create disastrous closed space. Thanks to Kyon, Yuki, and Itsuki the SOS brigade team win their first game, only owing to supernatural aid.

The second story, "Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody" takes place during Tanabata. Mikuru takes Kyon back in time three years to when Haruhi was in middle school. It turns out that because of this meeting, Haruhi was inspired to come to North High and continue her search for the paranormal.

In "Mystérique Sign", the Computer Club president vanishes and the SOS Brigade attempt to find him. While at first, his apartment seems empty, Yuki, Kyon and Itsuki return later to discover the president has been transported to an alternate dimension, to which they go to rescue him.

The final story, "Remote Island Syndrome" is a murder mystery set on a remote and deserted island. The SOS Brigade's summer holiday there, staying with friends of Itsuki, soon becomes full of danger when a person is found dead in the midst of a storm. After attempting to solve the mystery, Kyon realises that it was all a ploy to keep Haruhi entertained.

These four short stories continue the narrative from the first two volumes and continue to develop the cast of characters the reader like. It is another exciting and fun-filled set of adventures that easily keeps one entertained. ( )