Song Bird – Great Barrier Reef Rescue

Song Bird – Great Barrier Reef Rescue by Karen Tyrrell

(Digital Future Press) RRP $14:95     ISBN: 9780648161745

Reviewed by Jeffery E Doherty

Something bad is happening on Green Turtle Island. Marine creatures are dying, and Rosie’s aka Song Bird superhero’s friends are disappearing. Can Song Bird find her friends and rescue the Great Barrier Reef before it is too late?

After winning a free vacation; Rosie, her parents, sister Raven and friends Ben and Amy fly to Green Turtle Island. Unfortunately, someone has sabotaged their helicopter and Rosie must use her Song Bird superpowers to save them. That is the first clue that something is wrong. A resort with no other guests, cancelled activities, missing turtles and tropical fish washing up on the beach make it clear that her nemesis, Destructo is up to his old tricks again.

Rosie and her friends must travel through a time portal to a magical aquatic land to find a way to save the reef in her own time. To foil Destructo’s evil plot, Song Bird must overcome her fears, face mechanical sharks and discover which of her friends is betraying her.  

This is a book for young readers who love a strong female hero. It is a fantastical adventure into an underwater wonderland. The story highlights the current plight of the Great Barrier Reef, one of our wonders of the natural world.  It is fast paced, and the characters are diverse and interesting. An appendix at the back of the book has some thought-provoking information and links to sites about the Great Barrier Reef.

This is the fourth book in the Song Bird series but it can be read as a stand-alone novel. I would recommend this book to 8-12-year-old readers.