Synopsis: After returning to Austin from Camp Green Lake, Armpit sets himself five goals - five small steps. But, these steps turn out to be much bigger than he originally anticipated and selling over-priced tickets is much more complicated than he was foolishly led to believe. This is a brilliant, fast-paced adventure by the bestselling author of Holes and is more of a spin-off of the original than a sequel.

Review: The humour and suspense of this novel are well presented by Curtis McClarin, who has starred in such television productions as Law and Order and NYPD Blue. His Afro-American accent helps to set the scene for Louis Sachar’s, Small Steps. His no-nonsense delivery fits smoothly with the theme of the book, of exploring the issues of racial discrimination, whilst placing the action firmly in the US. I particularly enjoyed his moving representation of Ginny, Armpit's neighbour, who has cerebral palsy. He also gives a realistic portrayal of Armpit, the main protagonist, which met my pre-conceived ideas after meeting him in Holes. There is no background music or sound effects, making the CD’s very clean cut and easy to listen to. There are five CD’s in total with an approximate running time of 5 hours, 30 minutes.

2007-01-23