Robert Favretto (text) and Danny Willis (illustrator), Gorski’s Bitemare, Ford Street Publishing, February 2019, 100 pp., (pbk), RRP $12.95 ISBN 9781925804164
Gorski is a just a normal vampire kid – he lives in a castle with his sister Drusella, and his parents. He attends the Belfry Academy for bats of all kinds, not just vampire bats, but also fruit bats and flying foxes and more. One night, he and his friend get into some trouble with a nasty fruit bat, Nectar, and Gorski finds himself going through a very unwelcome transformation.
Favretto’s Gorski is a typical junior fiction character, the annoying little brother who gets more than he bargained for from his behaviour. Younger readers may enjoy his hijinks, although at times the story is quite slow and could use more action. The writing is filled with bat and blood puns, but is lacking in other silliness that could’ve upped the humour. Readers will enjoy the relations between the siblings, and the horror details – bonus if you’re also into bats!
Reviewed by Madeleine Crofts
