By: Katherine Rundell
Rate: good
For fans of survival stories, The Explorer by Katherine Rundell is perfect. Fred, Con, Lila and her five-year-old brother Max are on their way back to England from Manaus when their plane crashes over the Amazon and the pilot dies. The four kids must face predators such as caiman and piranha, and they eat crazy stuff to stay alive, such as eating bugs mixed with cocoa beans. Also, they slowly begin trusting each other. When Fred finds a map that leads to secrets of a man that lives in a secret city within the jungle, they are astonished and Fred wants to tell the world of the city. But the man, whom they call the explorer, warns Fred not to do that, for the beauty of the city would be ruined. Fred slowly understands. The four kids roam with the explorer, but they need to get back to Manaus. The explorer reveals to them a plane, which he flew when he was young. Although Fred is terrified that he might crash it, the explorer teaches him how to fly it, and tells the kids to burn it after they get there so people won’t question it. Fred flies the others to safety, and they keep the city a secret. I think Rundell did a great job writing a survival story, and it’s different from the others such as Hatchet and Robinson Crusoe.
Leave a Reply