When Wahoo Cray’s family runs low on dough, he and his dad land a gig working as animal wranglers for phony TV survivalist Derek Badger. Kidzworld has the book review of Chomp by Carl Hiaasen.
Expedition Survival!
After an injury involving an iguana to the head, Mickey Cray has been unable to work. But now his family is running low on cash flow. His wife is forced to travel to China to teach English. Meanwhile, Mickey and his son Wahoo land a gig as animal wranglers with a big time TV Show called Expedition Survival! On the upside, they’ll be making big bucks. On the downside, the show’s star, Derek Badger, is a big phony bologna.
What a Phony!
Derek Badger pretends to be a survival expert, living in the wild without any luxuries. But when the cameras aren’t rolling, Derek cozies up in the best hotel available and dines on room service. To make matters worse, Derek insists on messing with Mickey Cray’s animals, which infuriates Mickey. Even though that nearly kills him, Derek thrives off the thrill and decides to only shoot with real wild animals from now on.
Tuna Troubles
On their way to their filming destination, Wahoo runs into Tuna, a girl from school, who has a black eye and lives with her alcoholic father in a trailer in the Wal-Mart parking lot. Mickey Cray insists that Tuna travel with them for the duration of the show. Tuna is excited. She admires Derek Badger, until she meets him of course. While filming on a remote island, things take a turn for the worst. Derek gets bitten by a bat and disappears in the jungle. Meanwhile, Tuna’s raging, gun-wielding father comes after her.
The Bottom Line
Chomp is a entertaining middle grade novel for boys. It’s definitely not the best kids book by author Carl Hiaasen, but it offers a solid adventure. We recommend this novel to anyone who loves nature and survival documentaries, or who just likes a quick, fast-paced read.
Chomp Rating:
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