fighting bullying one novel at a time

VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates) Magazine Praises CAMP

Amy Becker is fourteen, lonely, and troubled, stuck in her own angst evolving from rejecting her uber-controlling, German-immigrant mother and caring for her autistic brother, Charlie. Her dad struggles to keep the peace, but Amy wishes her strict, demanding mother were dead. Then, Uncle Ed buys a summer camp in Maine, and Amy reluctantly heads for the wilderness, where she finds her fellow campers far more deceiving than her secretive mother. Amy’s chief nemesis is Rory, a troubled deviant whose goal is to bully Amy into silence about the cruel mistreatment she and her pals create. Erin befriends Amy, and for once she has a true confidante and comrade. Wolf is known as a champion anti-bullying advocate, but there is much more to this story than applauding Amy’s efforts in learning to stand up for herself. Secrets meander through the pages and threaten to tear Amy’s world apart. The tension mounts as readers wonder why Amy cannot bring herself to reveal the torture she is undergoing at camp, what Amy’s mother is hiding, or what will happen when the truth prevails. The story is set in 1963; the timeframe contributes to the climax, but the awful price Amy must pay in her coming-of-age story resonates with horror and redemption as the denouement leaves the reader breathless. This mesmerizing book is a must-read for adolescents and the adults who care about them. Ages 12 to 18.

        ––VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates) Magazine