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The Dark Ground
Gillian Cross Dutton Children's Books © 2004 |
Robert is on vacation with his family when his life is changed drastically. His plane crashes, and Robert blacks out only to find himself lost in a dark jungle. He wanders for days in search of other survivors from the plane crash. He soon comes to realize that there is no one else, and he must establish a shelter with food and water to survive. After a few days, he notices that someone is following him and begins leaving him food and clothing.
After several nights and visits from this stranger, Robert plans to follow her to find her “home.” What if there are other people living with her? Does this girl know where they are and what has happened to him? Then, one night when the girl comes to bring Robert supplies, he runs after her and discovers a group of other children like him. They soon accept Robert into their civilization and he is given different tasks throughout the cavern.
When he finally begins to blend into their society, Robert makes another shocking discovery. He and all of the others in the cavern have somehow shrunken and are only located in the park across the street from Robert’s house. He and three others must now make the long journey to his home, where everything he has taken for granted in his life now become obstacles. Will Robert make it back home, and what will his journey involve along the way?
I enjoyed this book because it is full of suspense, and it allows the reader’s mind to guess what will happen next. This is definitely a book of fictional fantasy. Nothing like this has happened (yet), but anything is possible. This book contains a variety of characters, so it may relate to many different people. The Dark Ground is a good book for a wide range of people to read. The plot is simple, yet interesting for older readers, and there are no difficult vocabulary words. There are, however, a few incidents of mild violence between the children and animals, and one death does occur. It may, therefore, be best for junior high students or older depending on the reader’s level of maturity.
The Dark Ground is quite similar to Stephen King’s novel, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. In King’s novel, a young girl also finds herself lost in the woods only to find that she was very close to home but searching in the wrong direction. She too faces many obstacles in her long journey home
~ Gerald Wasko, Grade 12, Liberty High School