No Good Deed

May 22, 2017
Moldavsky (Kill the Boy Band) delivers an over-the-top farce set at a summer camp for teenage activists. Sixteen-year-old narrator Gregor Maravilla, an avid Superman fan, and teen movie star Ashley Woodstone are among the campers who find themselves competing over the chance to win an internship with tech billionaire, humanitarian, and camp founder Robert Drill, sabotaging each other and not acting at all like young do-gooders. Moldavsky dials every aspect of the story up to 11, including the causes that the various campers campaign for: Ashley’s is “Eat Dirt” (it isn’t metaphorical), and Gregor starts referring to the other attendees by their passion projects as a prank war heats up (“Water Conservation cut off the water to the girls’ showers. Abstinence and Sex Positivity had been locked in the sports shed together”). Ostensibly, it’s all in service of exploring what happens when good intentions and conscientiousness collide with the selfish side of human nature, but without much depth to the characters or storyline, the effect is that of a single joke that goes on too long. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jenny Bent, Bent Agency.

September 4, 2017
Voice actor Crouch reads this account of friendly competition gone wrong in a youthful, peppy voice that perfectly suits the teen summer camp setting. Sixteen-year-old Gregor Maravilla is attending a sleepaway camp for activist teens founded by his idol, tech billionaire Robert Drill. But Drill is entirely absent, and all the campers at Camp Save the World are hypercompetitive do-gooders competing for an internship with Drill at the end of the summer. Actor Couch captures the protagonist’s emotions, especially in the darker moments, such as when Gregor tries to convince his fellow campers that he’s not racist after attempting to sabotage a group project dedicated to social justice. Some of his vocal portrayals miss the mark, such as that of the teen celebrity Ashley Woodstone, whose valley-girl voice sounds too shallow during her more somber moments. The characters in the story are not all that developed, and Couch’s characterization only flattens them more. Ages 14–up. A Point hardcover.

Narrator Michael Crouch sets exactly the right tone in this satirical take on social justice and teen angst. All Gregor Maravilla wants from Camp Save the World is to meet the legendary Robert Drill and learn how to make an impact through activism. As nonsensical challenges and dangerous competitions mount, Crouch balances the tone of the first-person narration between sardonic and hopeful, mirroring Gregor's increasing confusion at the chaos around him. The summer camp setting means that Crouch has an array of secondary characters to distinguish individually by tone and accent. One standout is teen celebrity Ashley Woodstone's perfect blend of enthusiastic absurdism and genuine friendliness. Goldy Moldavsky's story requires a total suspension of disbelief, and Michael Crouch's performance makes that a pleasure. N.M. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine