Weekend at the Ritz

Dave Jenkinson is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba and the author of the “Portraits” section of Emergency Librarian.

Told from the perspective of a Grade 10 student, Kevin Ashworth,
O’Keeffe’s fifth book is a rollicking comedy of errors. Invited by
his best buddy, Bobby Spezzactena (aka Spazz), to join him on a job
paying $250, Kevin discovers that the “work” seemingly involves no
more than spending the weekend enjoying the amenities of the luxurious
Royal Suite at The Ritz Plaza, the city’s classiest hotel. Because
Spazz strongly resembles Billy T. Banko, lead singer of a famous
heavy-metal group, Banko has hired Spazz to impersonate him so that he
can sneak off to get married without the prying attention of the media.
The teen pair’s anticipated lazy weekend of room service, TV watching,
and hot-tub lounging suddenly changes when they, plus two of their
classmates, Debbie Dobrazynski and Lauren Malone, are grabbed by a trio
of inept kidnappers. Confined in an abandoned warehouse, the quartet
makes escape plans while their kidnappers, who don’t believe Spazz’s
impersonation explanation, try unsuccessfully to collect a ransom.

As is standard in this genre, appearances are not reality: the
villainous kidnappers turn out to be struggling musicians searching for
enough cash to enable them to go to Los Angeles to make a demo
recording. All ends well and warmly for everyone, with the final
chapter, set two months later, serving as an epilogue to update readers
on the teen foursome (now two romantically linked couples), plus the
ascending musical career of their erstwhile kidnappers. A guaranteed
winner for the Grades 5 to 9 crowd. Highly recommended.