Up the Creek by Nicholas Oldland

Up the Creek by Nicholas Oldland
Life in the Wild
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Genre: Childrens, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 3+
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

These are in effect identical to the original, but cost due to lack of research costs only a fraction of what the little blue miracle pill is being used by previously invented drugs, effects of levitra professional . And it is a blessing when our rifle scopes weigh less and do not add to the weight price for generic viagra ratio. Also medicine excessively purchase levitra frankkrauseautomotive.com packed with nitrate is undeniably perilous to man s health. These viagra in the uk are helpful in increasing the size of the penis but it implies better urge for sexual drive. There once was a bear, a moose and a beaver who were the best of friends, though they often disagreed. So when the three friends go canoeing together one sunny day, it doesn’t take long for them to start quarreling with one another. First, they can’t decide who should get to steer the canoe. Later, they debate how best to get across a beaver dam that blocks their way. But when they can’t agree on the proper course for maneuvering through the white-water rapids they suddenly find themselves in, the consequences become truly perilous. It takes a long, uncomfortable night spent stranded on a rock to remind the bear, the moose and the beaver what they often forget: everything turns out better when they work together as a team.

There’s more than one way to move a canoe up a creek.

One of the things I liked the most about this story was how fairly it treated all three main characters. Each one of them had ideas for using the canoe that would have worked out perfectly well if their friends had cooperated with them. This wasn’t a case of one animal having better ideas than the others. They simply needed to learn how to work together to accomplish their goals, and that made their conflict even more interesting than it would have otherwise been.

I was confused by the fact that none of the characters had names or nicknames. It would have been helpful to know how to refer to them as I read each page, especially once tensions between all three friends rose and they began fighting about whose paddling and maneuvering techniques were the best ones.

The plot twists kept me giggling. There are so many different things that can surprise anyone who goes out for a ride on the water. The challenges the characters faced provided a lot of meaningful conflict for the storyline without ever veering into territory that would be too scary for the age group this was written for. I appreciated how well the author balanced those two needs that could have been, but definitely didn’t need to be, in competition with each other.

Anyone who has ever disagreed with a friend about the best way to do something should check out Up the Creek.