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Heartwarming New England farm story and road trip chapter book for kids

Title: Kara and The Magic Camper

Author: Jessica Policarpo

Hardcover ISBN: 9791221067279

Paperback ISBN: 9791221067286



Book cover Kara and the Magic Camper. Depicts a grandmother with a cat, and Kara with all her farm animal friends, in front of the camper they discover.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Jessica Policarpo’s Kara and the Magic Camper. This chapter book of 164 pages is suitable for readers 8 to 12 years old but adults will also enjoy this delightful story, one in which “Life on the farm was always full of happiness and love” (p. 63). The novel depicts a lovely and somewhat nostalgic blend of farm life coupled with a wild field trip into an enchanted forest. Yvetta Douarin is responsible for the truly beautiful color illustrations that are scattered throughout the book.

 

The “Let’s meet the characters” chapter in the beginning of the book details the characters’ bios and descriptions, accompanied by illustrations, which piqued my interest from the word go. As one would expect of a typical New England farm story, the novel contains a delightful mix of characters. For instance, there is a goat called Professor; a mole named Tobia; hens Elsa, Eve and Gladys; and Slumber the dog. Kara lives with Grandma Violet in the farmhouse. Her parents and baby brother are away a lot and the farm animals are her only friends.

 

One gets acquainted with the daily routine on a farm in chapter 1. The easy, good-natured and clever banter among the animals—especially during meals—sets the tone for this book immediately. They are a very funny lot. Dialogue is quirky and hilarious and helps to set a fast pace for the story. The animals normally meet for tea and that is where the bulk of their discussions take place. I would have enjoyed a more varied setting especially since a farm has such interesting places for gatherings. At times, I wondered whether the smart wordplay in the dialogue might go over a young reader’s head, but then I realized it would be a great opportunity to add to their vocabulary and comprehension.

 

One week day, Slumber sees Tobia sneak off into the woods and reports it to the Professor. That evening, Slumber and the Professor follow Tobias into the woods as well and make an unexpected discovery, as Slumber declares, “Now that’s a sight I never thought I’d see in this lifetime” (p. 42). Tobias has discovered a camper stuck in a sort of lake in the middle of the woods. The animals soon recount the old legend about the woods that the trees had magical power and might not always let people in or out. But now that they’ve found this camper, they can’t just leave it there, can they? And so begins the adventure of a lifetime…

 

I loved how the story ends, launching a potential series, with so much promise of adventures to come as the family of friends dream of going on trips with their pre-loved little house on wheels.

 

Kara and the Magic Camper is all about facing fears, overcoming challenges, learning to forgive and trust, mustering courage, teamwork, supporting one another, friendship and learning what family really means. Some moral pointers are discreetly placed throughout the story. For example: “Sometimes when we are really angry, things don’t come out just right and we take it out on people just because we haven’t understood what the bottom feeling is” (p. 66) and “[S]ometimes discussions are good because they make you realize how much you care about someone, where you went wrong, and what you can adjust so that it doesn’t happen again” (p. 68).

 

Kara and The Magic Camper is a heartwarming story that will leave you wanting more!


Review by Louise Viljoen

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