Boy vs beast: Fire beast by Mac Park

Originally published in 2011 this book has been reprinted to allow a new cohort of young readers to enjoy these books as their first steps to reading novels. The pseudonym Mac Park is the author Louise Park, known for her bestselling series fiction for younger readers that includes Zac Power, Boy vs Beast, Harriet Clare, D-Bot Squad, Star Girl and the Grace mysteries. She also writes as H.I. Larry.

This is the third book in the series of stories about Kai and his dogbot battle buddy BC who are Border guards in training to protect the world from the Mega Beasts who are constantly trying to enter the human side of Earth through the border wall.  The story has Kai and BC battling a fire-throwing beast using all the gadgets provided to them by the BMC (Bordaria Master Command). The book introduces Kai and his dogbot, describes the world they live in and what their missions entail using simple language, short sentences and large font.  The illustrations throughout complement and enhance the text. There is also a section of graphic novel style pages that shows the actual battle with the beast in the story, making it more enjoyable for this young audience.

Themes: Computer games, Battles, Beasts.

Gabrielle Anderson