Boy vs Beast #11: Storm Mutant

Boy vs Beast #11: Storm Mutant by Mac Park (Scholastic Australia)

PB RRP $7.99

ISBN 978-1-92193-170-3

Reviewed by Jenny Heslop

It is a Sunday and Border Guard Kai Masters is hanging out in his games room, (a skate park at the moment), practising moves which may be useful when he uses hover board transportation. His orbix beeps alerting him to a dust storm in wind land. Fearing it will be another mutant beast and an epic battle, Kai wastes no time, taking the slide to the battle room, collecting BC, his bionic dog, on the way.

After choosing his battle gear and mashing up the features he thinks he may need to defeat this new beast, he and BC go to the transport room. Here Kai makes a few changes to the SC2-bot, adding wind battling gear to it and they are off to the take-off pad on the top of the lighthouse.

Once in wind land, Kai and BC must overcome a massive red dust storm, pests in the form of rock birds hurling fiery weapons and the baby Beast Stormasurix before finally facing the fully grown version of the mutant beast - a mix of rock and wind beasts with three horrible heads and toxic breath.

As is the custom in the Boy vs Beast stories, the final battle is in comic form, giving a visual perspective of the battle instead of just text. This, along with the fun gadgets, fantastical lighthouse home base, futuristic transportation and ever changing beasts to battle, make this series popular with young boys. Action packed, but short and simple with a computer game structure it is the sort of book which will entice boys who may not be eager to practise their reading skills.

Storm Mutant is the eleventh in a series which has already reached 30 titles so there are plenty for eager young fans to read.