Review
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Title: Graysen Fox and the Treasure of Principal Redbeard
Author: J. Scott Savage
Publisher: Shadow Mountain Publishing
Genre: Youth Fiction
Year Published: 2023
Number of Pages: 250
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 13: 978-1-63993-103-3
Price: $18.99
Reviewed by Catherine C. Peterson for the Association for Mormon Letters
What do you do when you hear about hidden treasure underneath the demolished wing of a remodeled school? What will you do with the hoard of toys confiscated by the school’s former principal years ago – toys that are collectible and may be valuable? What if you could return them to their rightful owners? If you are fedora-wearing Graysen Foxx, fifth-grade treasure hunter, you methodically document the clues, enlist a couple of younger students to help, and go hunting.
J. Scott Savage adds Graysen Fox and the Treasure of Principal Redbeard to his series of several books written for middle-grade students. Graysen Foxx, the main character, goes through hair-raising experiences to search for the treasure, which until now has only been a speculation, perhaps a fable, of a treasure. Graysen watches for signs, tries a disguise, avoids the 6th-grade bully, outsmarts his smartie-pants nemesis, wangles his way out of detention, and escapes big scary rats. His motive is to obtain the treasure and right a wrong by returning the goods to the students who lost them.
Readers can easily make a movie in their heads due to the clever metaphors and colorful descriptions of quirky characters and a plot full of machinations and surprising twists and turns. Ordinary Elementary School turns out not really being very ordinary. Characters with entertaining names like the custodian Mr. Flickersnicker, the Warden (the teacher in charge of detention), Principal Redbeard (the long-gone principal), the Doodler (the boss student), and the Raven (Graysen’s arch-enemy) all give a colorful vibe to the story.
Graysen keeps a journal that describes places and things in the school. Some examples are:
The Porcelain Palace – the boys’ bathroom
Sixth Grade Town – where the mean sixth graders hang out
The laminated hall pass – the coveted ticket to get out of class
Desk Mountain – where discarded desks were stored in huge piles Underground
The treasure – the trove of students’ items collected from students
The Forsaken Fields – the weedy field adjacent to the school
Savage’s metaphors and similes salt the story, adding humor and description to the narrative. For example, “throat closed up like a cheap paper straw in a carton of milk,” “lips as cold as a snow boot’s zipper,” and “fingers shaking like an English teacher trying to get the last bit of ink out of a printer cartridge,” Savage sprinkles clever flavor throughout.
For an audience of tweeners, this book has plenty of adventure, humor, and action. Graysen Foxx and the Treasure of Principal Redbeard is an entertaining and appropriate book for young people, and I recommend it for its genre and appeal for young readers. It is also a fun read for adults.