Skink--No Surrender

by Carl Hiaasen
281 pgs

Skink -- No Surrender is Carl Hiaasen’s newest book written for younger readers. This time around he borrows one of his more colorful characters from a few of his books written for “older” readers: Skink. Skink is a one-eyed, unkempt, half-naked homeless man who was once the governor of Florida, but who decided one day to walk away from the job, and society as a whole, so he could begin doling out acts of retribution against individuals and companies that didn’t share his sense of stewardship for the fragile Floridian ecosystem.

Richard is a 16-year-old, who often walks at night along the beach with his cousin Malley hoping to catch a glimpse of a mother loggerhead sea turtle laying her eggs. But Malley fails to show up one night for a scheduled search, and when Richard tries to contact her to find out where she is, he discovers she has left town with a guy she met and had been communicating with in a chat room.

While the police quickly become involved in searching for her, Richard believes he knows her best and therefore has the best chance of finding her. So, he sets out to find her and bring her back home. Fortunately for him (and us, the readers), he’s accompanied by the crazy old man he met the night before on the beach, who was buried completely in the sand, breathing through a straw, waiting to ambush anyone looking for turtle eggs to sell on the black market.

Once again, Hiaasen’s love for his home state, with its beauty, crazy inhabitants, and deadly creatures, is obvious while he tells his story. It’s a fun and entertaining book, and told as only Hiaasen could.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆