Escape from Cuttlefish Cove by Rachel Jackson

Escape from Cuttlefish Cove is the first in a new series called Solve it your way. Written and illustrated by Rachel Jackson (Australian senior intelligence analyst, researcher and author of intelligence products) this is a debut novel. There are 150 illustrations that aid the interpretation and following of clues.

This book could be a solution to the problem of finding a segway for those young people who are enthusiastic gamers but reluctant readers. Escape from Cuttlefish Cove could be read by the lone reader but does lend itself to being read with a buddy. It would be a great text for disengaged and struggling readers and their tutors or friends as it is interactive and multi-pathed. The reader is the driver of the plot. All choices and decisions are made by the reader and this is where the fun begins. The adventures come in bite size chunks with the reader flipping back and forward through the book to arrive at a consequence of their own choices that may be really quite nice e.g. imagine living with the merpeople in their merkingdom forever... or not so nice at all. Escape from Cuttlefish Cove gives the reader agency in the reading process.

Many of us are familiar with the 1980s and 90s Choose your own adventures series of children's gamebooks where each story was written from a second-person point of view with the reader assuming the role of protagonist.  This internationally popular series went into decline with the advent of computer games. Rachel Jackson's Solve it your way series could just bring children back to gaming through the medium of books rather than the screen. While the literary content may be slightly formulaic and simplistic, the tone is matter-of-fact and action oriented. You (the reader) are an active, capable, decision maker. You are confronted with all sorts of problems but you have choice and you do not run away from danger. You choose the right path. It is timely that children and young people are offered books that give them back that sense of capability, of curiosity and adventurousness. They need to be rescued from passivity and hopelessness and be redirected back into reading, solving problems and exploring options. Escape from Cuttlefish Cove engages the brain because problems must be solved in order to progress in certain directions. These problems may be riddles, tricky puzzles or codes. There are 64 different story paths with checklists in the back of the book for tracking progress and moving easily between stories. The reader can jump in and out at any point making it ideal for those who have not yet aquired reading stamina.

Escape from Cuttlefish Cove is recommended particularly as a book to offer reluctant readers and also for the enjoyment of all readers. It would be ideal if struggling readers are matched with a reading buddy so that the adventures can be decided upon, argued about and the consequences experienced together. Every chapter 'byte" ends with a text box with two or three choices- "If you choose...turn to page..." Escape from Cuttlefish Cove looks like an ordinary book but it is not. Teachers and librarians please share this series with your students.

For media enquiries contact Rowena Beresford, editor @rivetedpress.com.au.

Themes: Pirates, Treasure, Interactive adventure, Problem-solving.

Wendy Jeffrey