In Australia, summer is either a time for the beach, an opportunity to watch some cricket, or a genuine threat to life and property. Each year bushfires rage out of control consuming everything in their path. Michael Pankridge and Pam Harvey use this scenario as the backdrop for Into the Fire. Part Famous Five detective story, part cautionary tale, the novel takes us through the events of one hot summer’s day in the small mountain town of Teasdale. Five friends--Hannah, Ling, Gabby, Angus and E D-each separately deal with the threat of the oncoming fire, attempting to protect their family and treasured possessions. Amid the chaos, a rare, priceless brooch is stolen from the town library. The novel is told in counterpoint, with individual chapters devoted to the five friends and their circumstances on this fateful day. There’s a house to save, a horse to catch, a missing friend to find, a brother to keep safe and a mystery to solve. The friends are thrust together as they each find their way to Derwent’s Hut. With the thieves and the fire to beat, the friends use their ingenuity and skill to save the day. Pankridge knows his audience well, developing a lovely balance between action and narrative. Into the Fire is wonderfully accessible for preteens.

Ben Beaton is a writer and teacher in Perth

This review from Australian Bookseller & Publisher magazine is reproduced by kind permission of Thorpe-Bowker, a division of R R Bowker LLC. © Copyright 2008, Thorpe-Bowker

Tags: pam harvey & michael panckridge