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March 1, 2013/in Fiction 10-14 Middle/Secondary /by Angie Hill
BfK Rating:
BfK 199 March 2013
Reviewer: Gill Robins
ISBN: 978-1908435286
Price: £6.99
Publisher: Chicken House
Genre: Fiction
Age Range: 10-14 Middle/Secondary
Length: 352pp
Buy the Book

Upside Down in the Jungle

Author: Helen Phillips

Upside Down in the Jungle is a positive, responsible novel, full of suspense and rich in descriptive detail. It tells the story of Dr Wade, a renowned international ornithologist who travels widely. When he fails to return from a lengthy trip to study a jungle Lazarus species, his worried family set out to search for him. But neither people nor events are as they seem and when they eventually meet their father, a dark adventure unfolds.

As they find themselves increasingly sucked into a threatening world of big business, sisters Madeleine and Ruby learn to depend on each other; in order to survive they have to decide who can be trusted and why both of their parents are behaving so strangely. During the final denouement, it becomes clear that they have not only saved their father, but that they have also learnt a great deal about themselves and each other, about the strength of family and about trust.

In addition to being a really good yarn, the book also deals with some big-hitting contemporary issues, including the ability of multinational corporations to exploit fragile environments and the role of sustainable ecotourism in living accountably. It’s a novel written from the heart – the author spent her childhood weekends hiking with her family in Colorado and her student summers volunteering in the Costa Rican jungle. These experiences, together with a love of wildlife, add an authoritative overtone to a rich and exciting narrative.

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http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png 0 0 Angie Hill http://booksforkeeps.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/bfklogo.png Angie Hill2013-03-01 01:00:442021-11-10 15:52:03Upside Down in the Jungle

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