Sure, he’s taken Annie, Rew, and their grandmother hostage, but he also cooks for the family, tells them stories, and cleans up the house that has been overrun by Annie’s grandma’s hoarder ways. What’s great about said criminal houseguest, Andrew Snow, is he’s not such a bad guy. Becoming pensively engaged with Annie makes the action-filled moments that much more surprising and unexpected, getting your heart racing as Rew especially tries to make trouble for their criminal houseguest. You get invested in Annie’s moments of thought, wanting to find out more about her past just as badly as she does. Rather than let herself panic after being held hostage, she takes the forced seclusion as a chance to learn more about her family and why her parents left her and Rew to be raised by their grandmother. Gewirtz’s protagonist Annie may not be the most book smart girl in the world, but she seems to be wise beyond her years. Gewirtz has found that sweet spot that blends tension-filled action and a strong literary voice. A hostage situation ensues that lasts for over a month and is filled with anxiety, screaming fights, and family drama. Their summer vacation becomes anything but sleepy as nearly fifty felons in a nearby prison escape, and one of them decides to hideout in Annie and Rew’s home. “Zebra Forest” follows eleven-year-old Annie and her younger brother, Rew, as they make it through a scorchingly hot summer in a sleepy town. Who knew that a hostage situation could be described as endearing and sweet? I sure didn’t, until I read Adina Rishe Gewirtz’s “Zebra Forest.” Annie tells stories, too, as she and Rew laze under the birches and oaks of Zebra Forest - stories about their father the pirate, or pilot, or secret agent.īut then something shocking happens to unravel all their stories: a rattling at the back door, an escapee from the prison holding them hostage in their own home, four lives that will never be the same.ĭriven by suspense and psychological intrigue, "Zebra Forest" deftly portrays an unfolding standoff of truth against family secrets - and offers an affecting look at two resourceful, imaginative kids as they react and adapt to the hand they’ve been dealt. That was when Gran was feeling talkative, and not brooding for days in her room - like she did after telling Annie and her little brother, Rew, the one thing they know about their father: that he was killed in a fight with an angry man who was sent away. "If you’re going to do something, make sure you do it with excellence," Gran would say. When eleven-year-old Annie first started lying to her social worker, she had been taught by an expert: Gran.
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