1993, Bloomsbury Children's Books
HC $9.95
65 pages
7 chapters
Goodreads: 3.86
My rating: 2.5
I'm guessing, and for some reason never took the time to post this review....perhaps because I wanted to be more pleased with it than I was....
Akimbo's father is a park ranger somewhere in the African bush. Since Smith placed his Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency books in Botswana (I think), and he's resided there and in Zimbabwe, it might be set in either.
John, a crocodile expert, has come to the ranger station to tag crocodile families - newborns and their mothers. Akimbo gets permission to accompany him. He sees the mother netted and tagged, watches the babies hatch and tagged. The huge scary reptiles are everywhere - and Akimbo knows how dangerous they are. But then the unthinkable happens. John, a trained naturalist who should have known better, gets attacked by one as he's getting into their rubber boat. Things get more and more difficult as Akimbo hits the crocodile on the head with the oar, traverses the dangerous water, and hot wires the truck to get it started.
The beginning of the book was quite interesting. Its simple storytelling is peppered with some great words and descriptions. But then, perhaps to spice up a story that needed a little suspense/thrill, it turned in a crazy direction. I would have much preferred the ecological, environmental story with more caution thrown in. I have students who would love the animal part of this. I was even planning to read it aloud, but I think I'll try another in the series (Akimbo and the Elephants, Akimbo and the Lions, Akimbo and the Snakes....)
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