Jacqueline Harvey, Camp Chaos (Willa and Woof #7), Puffin Books, June 2024, 128 pp., RRP $12.99 (pbk), ISBN 9781761343568
This is seventh book in the Willa and Woof series of junior chapter books. Most aligned in reading level to series such as Aussie Nibbles, Evie and Pog, Little Lunch, and Ginger Green Playdate Queen. This series is a quick read for a competent year 1-2 child, but also useful for year 3 students who are still developing fluency.
This time Willa finds herself off on a school camp. It seems to be a new information to Willa that the camp is in two weeks from the time the teacher announces it (This requires a little bit of suspension of reality, as nowadays families get announcements and payment details for school camps months ahead of time). But Willa is confident it’s going to be a blast, even if she can’t be in the same cabin as her good friend Tae, because girls and boys can’t share. Tae, however, is showing a mysteriously strong reluctance to even go on camp. Then there is grumpy old Frank, Willa’s other good friend, who is keen to show her just what camping is all about. He is going to prepare her with bush craft skills so she can be a safe, competent camper.
With a smattering of illustrations and a fast-moving storyline, this is a very suitable story for readers graduating to independent books. This is type of book that school and public libraries should always have. It will never become a classic that gets re-read by the same child. But they fill a much-needed space in the literacy life cycle to build fluency and confidence in young readers.
Reviewed by Cherie Bell
