Sub-titled ‘A Dennith Grange Misadventure’, this 309-page novel for
children aged 9+ years, starts with Mr Berg and Ms Malatesta in charge of a
busload of students headed for four nights to Camp Buttress which is run by the
Klock family. Portraits of the ten children from year 7, with their names, are
shown before the story begins. For some reason, the publisher has chosen to
write under their names she/her, he/him, and they/them (irritating and
unnecessary). During the story, the teachers are referred to as Michael and
Maggie.
It turns out that the Camp in the woods is run-down and there’s no phone
reception. Celine is seeing conspiracies everywhere. Fionn has a bad
premonition about the colour blue, and Mr Berg is horrified at the camp’s
questionable safety standards. There’s a mystery which will have readers guessing
as the students and their teachers try to solve it – and survive.
In her
first upper-primary novel, Anna Zobel turns her knack for writing diverse characters to the task of
creating an engrossing adventure-mystery story for imaginative readers. The
kids of Dennith Grange School inhabit a world where coming-of-age challenges
include not only the social vagaries of pre-adolescence but also the
spontaneous onset of one’s individual ‘powers’ (anything from premonitions to
shapeshifting), which are as much emblems of growth, transition and
individuality as they are superpowers. But this isn’t a fantasy novel; it’s a
journey into a world only slightly different to ours, where ghosts are still
mysterious and school camps a labyrinth of challenges (for teachers and
students alike!).
One of
the book’s strengths is its refusal to pander to predictability at any level,
from character construction to relationship dynamics, plot progression and the
ultimate resolution—yet the narrative decisions never feel self-conscious or
forced. An example is the relatable, believable tensions between the kids on
camp, which aren’t simplified into formulaic scenarios such as bullying but are
based on more interesting inner qualities and needs. All the characters have
vulnerabilities, challenges, strengths, and passions, and all are worth getting
to know. (The third-person limited perspective shifts between one teacher and
two students, but the second teacher and eight other children are all equally
unique.) Whimsical, a tiny bit spooky, affirming, engaging, sincere, insightful,
and occasionally funny, This Camp is Doomed surely won’t be the only Dennith Grange
Misadventure Puffin publishes. This novel has been described as ‘a deliciously spooky mystery with
magic, mischief and mayhem.’
No comments:
Post a Comment
Buzz Words Books would love to hear what you think.