Into Darkness

March 1, 2021
Clark and Foon return to battle the darkness. Clark is thrilled to return to Camp I Can and spend time with his pals Catherine-Lucille and D.A. Foon, Clark's trusty stuffed protector, is pumped to come along for the adventure. But Camp I Can seems a bit off this year. The grown-ups are acting weird, there's a peculiar gunk appearing in the campers' quarters, and, worst of all, stuffies are disappearing one by one. A dastardly plot of revenge against Foon slowly reveals itself as this second entry carries on building upon its predecessor in smart and satisfying ways. The character work is richer, the fantasy world is built out just a bit further, and Clark evolves just enough to make his character development feel earned. Readers who enjoyed Foon and his antics in Stuffed (2019) will find much to enjoy here, particularly those eager to bask in the trappings of high fantasy but not quite ready to jump into the deep end of the pool. The book's one big drawback is its length: At 400 pages the story feels a bit stretched, particularly with the frequent interstitials from the Great Pleticon's perspective which let readers in on the Monsters' plot; they then have to wait for Clark and his pals to catch up. Clark is cued as White; there is diversity in the supporting cast. An entertaining second entry. (Fiction. 8-12)

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April 1, 2021
Grades 3-6 In this sequel to 2019's Stuffed, Clark and his friends are looking forward to two weeks at Camp I Can, where he and his friends will sneak in their protector Stuffies and discuss all things Monsters. But as soon as the friends arrive, they realize that something is wrong: many of the camp staffers are going missing and being replaced, one of Clark's friends suddenly decides he isn't into Stuffies after all, and a strange slime begins to appear in kids' bunks. As more staff go missing, Clark's Stuffy realizes the frightening extent of an incoming Monster invasion and must enter the World of Darkness in order to stop it. Returning fans and newcomers alike will find themselves pulled into Braswell's magical world full of Light and Dark, Monsters and heroic Stuffies. The fast-paced chapters, full of spooky mystery, will give readers goosebumps as they turn pages long into the night--undoubtedly with their own Stuffies beside them to keep any Monsters away.

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