Chow, Derrick. Ravenous Things. Disney Hyperion, 2022. 978-1-368-07763-7. 325 p. $16.99. Grades 4-7.
Reggie misses his dad so much. He knows he should feel stupid going to his dad’s grave and giving him a birthday present – a model of the Enterprise he made, but it’s the only way he can feel close to him. When a curious, oddly speaking man accosts him on his way home from the cemetery, he tells Reggie he can obtain his heart’s desire if he comes to the subway station at midnight. There is only one thing Reggie wants, his dad back. Maybe he’ll be less angry then. Maybe his mom will become herself again, instead of the spaced out agoraphobe she has become. Even though Reggie is skeptical, he boards the train, joining dozens of other kids, including his arch enemy, Gareth, and Chantal, a peppy, bossy Black girl. Each child is thrilled to be reunited with their deceased loved one, but the dream-come-true reunions quickly turn into nightmares, and the three team up to escape from the terrifying parallel world. As the trio attempts to unravel the situation, they uncover a Pied Piper tale taken to extremes. The verminous conductor is luring children underground in order to replace them with transformed rats. Can the three friends stop the conductor and return the lost children to their homes? This creepy horror story provides chills and shivers galore, while exploring the manifestations of grief and loss in children. The three protagonists have dealt with loss in three generational forms, each of it traumatic and life altering. Their teamwork to derail the conductor offers them support as they work through grief, loss, and survivor guilt. Reggie acknowledges his anger issues, Gareth reclaims his music, and Chantal emerges from her sister’s memory. Reggie presents as Asian, Garrett is white, and Chantel is Black.
THOUGHTS: This story succeeds on multiple levels. The Pied Piper tale is imaginative and creepy, but balanced by the exploration of grief and its aftermath. Purchase where horror books are popular.
Horror Nancy Nadig, Penn Manor SD