October 2, 2023
Celebrity chef Oliver combines goofy humor and wilderness whimsy with serious real-world issues to craft a layered story-within-a-story, framed as a bedtime tale that a father recounts to his two children. Despite warnings from the local adults that no good will come to those who wander into the surrounding wilds, tween Billy and his compatriots Andy, Anna, and Jimmy venture into enchanted Waterfall Woods. After befriending members of a Sprite civilization, the quartet learn that the Rhythm—or the natural balance of the forest—is off-kilter. At the Sprites’ urging, the youths investigate a faceless industrial poultry farm that’s spewing waste into the waterways. As Billy and company navigate the perils of the verdant woods, they use the lessons learned in the wilderness to counter challenges back home, such as bullying and managing learning disabilities, grounding the fantastical adventure and pleasantly decelerating the quicksilver plot. Descriptive writing renders plenty of delicious food scenes throughout, portrayed via textured pencil illustrations by Armiño (A Wolf Called Wander). Recipes conclude. Most human characters appear white; Jimmy reads as Black. Ages 8–12.