Review:
Cross-currents by Janeen Brian
Lothian, 2007
(Age 11-14) On a camping trip with her stepfather, but lumbered with
his son, an uncooperative moody boy whose head remains in a book,
Julia's only wish is to get home to be with her heavily pregnant
mother. When the car breaks down miles from anywhere on a dirt track to
an old gold mining town, the trio takes shelter in an abandoned hut
when it pours with rain. The roof caves in trapping Jeff's leg and the
two teenagers find that they must rely on each other if they are all to
be saved.
An exciting, breathless adventure story, the reader's heightened
interest follows the two protagonists as they spat with each other,
even when they are in danger. Their brief conversations, accentuated
with short, spare insults, are instantly recognizable as the
conversation of teens all over the world, when confronted with someone
they do not like. This combined with the dramatic situation in which
they all find themselves, makes for thrilling reading. Kids in middle
school will certainly find much to like in this short novel.
Fran Knight
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