A Small Zombie Problem by K. G. Campbell, 229 pages. Alfred A. Knopf (Random House), 2019. $17.
Language: G Mature Content: G Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
August DuPont lives with his Aunt Hydrangea in a dilapidated house in a Louisiana swamp. His aunt's phobias have kept him inside his whole life. He's never spoken a word to anyone other than his aunt. This all changes the day he receives a letter from his Aunt Orchid requesting a visit. Traveling to her house, he ventures into a graveyard where a tremendous racket erupts from one of the tombs. He hightails it to his aunt’s house where she recounts the story of a missing family heirloom with unusual powers. She wants his help finding it. Walking home, past the graveyard, he encounters the aftermath of the earlier ruckus. He has unknowingly created a small zombie problem.
Campbell is a definite talent. August DuPont is like no other character out there. I love how strange and unusual this story is. The illustrations are worth mentioning too. So delightful. The overall "feel" of the story is similar to The Inventor's at No. 8 and The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place. The characters represent the ultimate in quirkiness. Consider this book for avid readers who go for the unusual.
Reviewer: Valerie McEnroe, MLIS
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