Kid vs. Squid: Solid children’s fantasy

Kid vs. Squid by Greg van Eekhout

Kid vs. Squid, by Greg van Eekhout, is definitely a children’s fantasy. It comes in at a slim sub-200 pages (with pretty good-sized print) and doesn’t take much time with detailed description, rich character development, or intricate plotting. That isn’t a complaint; it’s just to say that Kid vs. Squid knows who its audience is, and while it won’t dumb things down or talk down to its readers, it also won’t stretch them. Keeping to relatively humble standards of that sort, it succeeds pretty solidly.

Middle-school age Thatcher has been sent to his Uncle Griswald’s in Las Huesas, California for the summer. The beach town is oddly empty of beach-goers and Uncle Griswald lives in a tiny “museum” filled with shrunken heads, ships in bottles, strangely shaped bodies, and a “What-is-it” box he isn’t supposed to look into.

Things turn even stranger within a few pages as the box is stolen by young girl and soon Thatcher, the burglar (who turns out to be a princess), and another young girl (Trudy) are caught up in an ancient curse, the fall of Atlantis, and a battle against the head of a witch (yes, just the head) and her sea creature minions.

The plot is fast-paced and pretty straightforward, and there isn’t much time between events, especially at the close which feels a bit over-rushed and busy. The characters are clear but not particularly deep or rich. Thatcher tells us he’s a sarcastic, sometimes funny kid who uses words as defense/weapons (sometimes to a fault), but his wry humor is hit and miss throughout — sometimes right on and sometimes feeling forced or falling flat. Also, one never feels particularly attached to him. The same is true of Shoal, the princess, who is off-stage for the vast majority of the book. The best character by far is Trudy — a cross between Nancy Drew Young Detective, MacGyver, and as Thatcher points out, Batman (her utility belt is her backpack) which, he realizes, unfortunately makes him Robin. She feels the most unique of all the characters and the most individualistic, and the humor seems less forced with her. In some ways, I wished she were the main character, or at least we saw her do more (though she is heavily involved throughout).

Setting, description, etc. are pretty slim, as is typical of books aimed at younger readers. The streamlined nature helps with the beginning of the book, and young kids will enjoy speeding through, but it works against the story a bit more in the last quarter, where I found myself wishing that Van Eekhout had taken his time a bit more to show us some great set scenes as well as let some of the emotional impact build up.

Kid vs. Squid (a great title by the way) will be enjoyed by younger readers (say, 3rd through 6th grade) and less so as they move up into middle school. Recommended for that younger set, with a weaker recommendation for 7th and 8th graders who might find it a bit too quick and simple and lean, while it will probably hold little attraction for those even older.