Skink, one of Carl Hiaasen’s best characters, takes center stage in his latest novel. He’s a veteran who was once elected governor of Florida. He’s honest and deeply concerned about the environment, therefore he was not well-suited for politics. He dropped out of office and society. Now he turns up like a superhero, avenging lowlifes and litterbugs with violence and irony. He has to be on his best behavior this time since this book is for teens.
Most 14-year olds wouldn’t want to hang out with Skink. He’s a bum who wears turkey vulture beaks in his beard and eats mostly road kill. Richard, the main character, is an exception. When his cousin is kidnapped by a guy she met online, Skink helps him find her. Hiaasen taunts his young readers with Florida’s treacherous backcountry, which is even more thrilling than the virtual world where they often dwell. I never forgot that I was not the intended audience, but I still laughed.
Hiaasen has been writing South Florida crime fiction for decades. He also wrote several novels for kids. Skink No Surrender is his first novel for teens. As a librarian, I selected books for this age group. I’m happy to see more young adult fiction, especially without vampires. He gauges the audience well, and the theme is just edgy and inappropriate enough. If this was a movie it would be PG-13.
If Skink No Surrender sounds too goofy, check out Swamplandia!. It comes to mind because the premise of the novel is similar: a girl who’s trying to find her kidnapped sister in the Everglades. Swamplandia! is dark, not funny, and carries more literary heft. It’s told from a child’s perspective, which blurs reality for the adult reader. The author, Karen Russell, was awarded the MacArthur Fellowship in 2013, which was a nice consolation after this Pulitzer let-down. All her stories are mesmerizing and haunting. I highly recommend it, and Carl Hiaasen does, too.
