Tripwrecked! Tempest Terror

Frank and his drama club are on the way to Italy to perform Shakespeare's play The Tempest in a festival. Only an hour after their ferry sets sail, they encounter a tremendous storm and have to take to the life rafts. They are hit by a huge wave and find themselves marooned on a desert island. Frank soon realises that the predicament they find themselves in is very similar to the plot of the play they were going to perform, with strange music, monsters and missing people. Frank describes himself as 'sensible, quiet and dull', and is often overlooked by the other members of the group. But as his fellow pupils begin to argue among themselves, it is left to Frank and Rianna, to sort out the bickering and find out just exactly what is going on.

This is a great story, full of adventure and humour. It is also an excellent introduction to The Tempest; the author gives a clever overview of the characters and the plot of Shakespeare's work while cleverly weaving his own characters into it. Frank is just brilliant, no one listens to him at first, although people are more than happy to take the credit for his good ideas. I also loved Rianna, who quickly becomes Frank's ally and helps him to sort out the mess made by his fellow pupils. The section in which the group are confronted by the 'monster' is both funny and exciting, and Frank shows how resourceful he can be in a crisis.

One of the most interesting and important themes in the book is the importance of working as a team. When the pupils first find themselves marooned on the island, they are squabbling over who will be the leader of the group, and, as a consequence, waste time and achieve nothing. Even when faced by what they think is a monster, they are still arguing over who will do what. Frank and Rianna show how important it is for people to work together and help each other.

The book is presented in a dyslexia-friendly format, which makes it accessible to all readers. The illustrations by Mark Beech are a perfect addition, capturing the fun and mayhem of the story brilliantly. The author has already written a book based on A Midsummer Night's Dream, and his next offering is to be based on Macbeth, so I can see these books being welcomed as an introduction to Shakespeare by teachers, but also as a fun and engaging read by children. Can't wait for the next one!

88 pages / Reviewed by Beverley Somerset, School Librarian

Suggested Reading Age 9+