No More Pranks

Sylvia Pantaleo is an associate professor of education, specializing in
children’s literature, at the University of Victoria. She is the
co-author of Learning with Literature in the Canadian Elementary
Classroom.

Fifteen-year-old Pete Larkin likes to pull pranks. However, his latest
prank of phoning a sex therapist and impersonating one of his teachers
results in suspension from high school and expulsion to Tudoussac for
the summer. Understandably, his parents are worried about his social
affiliations and his level of maturity.

Though Pete is initially skeptical of his exile, as the summer
progresses he develops an appreciation for his Aunt Daisy and Uncle
Jean’s lifestyle, kayaking business, and commitment to the whales.
Then he meets Rosalie, the girl next door. Rosalie is unimpressed by
Pete’s pranks. But when they discover an injured whale, she joins Pete
in one last prank: the gathering of evidence to identify the individual
who has violated the whale-watching rules and is endangering the whales.

The Orca Soundings series is a collection of novels aimed at reluctant
teen readers. This one centres on an insecure teenager with a chip on
his shoulder, who seems to believe that his pranks will gain him
acceptance and status. Like most pranks, however, Pete’s result in
someone being “hurt” in some way. Eventually, though, Pete realizes
his motives for pulling pranks.

Although Pete’s personal growth is predictable, Polak develops
Pete’s character in a believable and satisfactory way. Her writing
communicates her knowledge of the setting and her research on whales.
Recommended.