The Sugarcane Kids and the Mystery at Angel Bay by Charlie Archbold
Text Publishing, 2026. ISBN: 9781923058385. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
The Sugarcane Kids and the Mystery at Angel Bay is the third book in The Sugarcane Kids series written by South Australian author Charlie Archbold. Her first two books, The Sugarcane Kids and The Red-Bottomed Boat and The Sugarcane Kids and the Empty Cage, have been enjoyed by eight to ten year olds who love that feeling of freedom, adventure and outwitting the evil adults.
Andy, Eli, Fletch, Bernie, Harvey, and of course four-legged Washington, are back in full swing in this new release. They love riding their bikes and being outdoors but have noticed a few changes in the natural sea environment. Crocodiles where they are not meant to be, Port Jackson shark eggs too far north and their old mate, Jerry the grouper off his food and disappearing for days on end. It is enough to get the investigative juices of these youngsters flowing and they set off for Angel Bay to try to work out what is happening to Jerry. Alongside this, mysterious amounts of dead fish are piling up on Angel Bay beach which will be catastrophic for the protection order on this once pristine bay.
The local community rallies together to clean up Angel Bay but it happens again and again. There is something up and The Sugarcane Kids will get to the bottom if it. Even if it means not being quite truthful with the adults in their lives. They are suspicious about the Babushka Environmental Detectives, concerned about the proposed resort development on Angel Bay by the pushy and persistent Raymond Royce and do not trust Royce’s niece Goodey who has come to the Bay for basketball. Will the gang be able to follow the clues and use their detective talents in solving the threat to their beautiful North Queensland home environment?
This fast paced, action packed book is a delight for readers. It offers plenty of opportunities to discover fascinating facts about the natural world and its creatures, all while following a cast of likeable characters, their families and engaging storylines.
Themes Family, Friends, Far North Queensland, Adventure, Danger, Excitement, Suspicions, Investigative Skills, Humour, Facts, Environmental Issues.
Kathryn Beilby
The sugarcane kids and the empty cage by Charlie Archbold
Text Publishing, 2024. ISBN: 9781922790996. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
The Sugarcane Kids and the Empty Cage is the second exciting adventure book in The Sugarcane Kids series. Written by South Australian author Charlie Archbold, the story is once again set in a small coastal town in far North Queensland, surrounded by lush, green, tropical rainforests, mangroves and the sea. In this latest publication, Andy and Eli and their friends, Bernie, Fletch and Harvey, are drawn to solve yet another mystery: the disappearance of native animals. At the beginning of the book are some very pertinent facts related to the plot that provide a glimpse of two of the much-loved animals, as well as the humorous side to Andy who is telling the story.
The narrative begins with an explanation of Nyepi Day, a Balinese tradition important to Eli’s family and friends. It is at Eli’s place that the reader learns about Gloria, an eclectus parrot who goes everywhere with Old Jean. Sadly, it is Gloria that is the first missing animal. This is devastating for many especially Old Jean. This is quickly followed by the disappearance of Anna, ‘not an anaconda’ but a scrub python housed in the library then Lenny, the bearded dragon that lives in the clubhouse at the golf course. Running parallel to this is the absent classroom teacher Mrs Cummins and canteen manager and bus driver Mrs Mathur, who have been replaced by Declan Nightweasel who basically lets the students do as they please, and Lyndell Hench who manages the canteen with an iron fist and drives the bus like it’s in a race.
It is not long before the intrepid Sugarcane Kids realise that something is not quite right with the Hench, as she is now called, and two twin visitors who seem to appear at the most obvious of times. The Kids meet daily to try to solve the mystery and it is while they are separated and finding out more about their suspects, that what has been happening and where the missing animals may be, falls into place. The evil adults in the story will stop at nothing to make money from the illegal trade of native Australian animals and the children do put themselves in danger on a number of occasions. But with bravery, clever problem solving and using the skills they each have they are able to out thwart the criminals.
The Sugarcane Kids and the Empty Cage is another rollicking read where children are given the freedom to roam and spend their days talking, bike riding, problem solving and enjoying their natural environment. The wonderful descriptive language used to describe different habitats add to the whole enjoyment of the story, and with the fabulous use of humour this a highly engaging read that will appeal to many middle grade readers.
Themes Family, Friends, Far North Queensland, Adventure, Danger, Excitement, Illegal Native Animal Trade, Suspicions, Investigative Skills, Humour.
Kathryn Beilby
The Sugarcane Kids and the Red-bottomed Boat by Charlie Archbold
Text Publishing, 2022. ISBN: 9781922458520. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
South Australian author Charlie Archbold has written an exciting and entertaining novel perfect for middle grade readers. This new release, shortlisted for the Text Prize, is set in a small coastal town in far North Queensland surrounded by sugarcane fields and mangroves.
Andy and his best mate Eli are inseparable. They spend their days together, whether at school or home. Their friendship bond is strong and when Eli’s cousin Jacob is arrested for theft, the two boys decide to find out the truth before he is sentenced. They call on fraternal twins Bernie and Fletch to help them and together they develop a plan of action. However, after some clever sleuthing, they realise they will need the help of annoying classmate Harvey, who incidentally has not been a friend to Andy and Eli, and the five go on a dangerous boat journey to solve the mystery of the theft. At the red-bottomed boat half buried deep in the mangroves, they must deal with a monstrous crocodile to discover the truth and then face unpleasant adversaries on their return to the marina.
The fast action-packed pages of this engaging book will hold the reader’s interest until the end. The relationship between each of the very different young characters who come from diverse family backgrounds, consists of humour, gentle rivalry and friendship, as well as deep respect for Eli and his Indonesian family. The vivid descriptive language used to describe the surroundings in which the story is set will allow the reader to be transported to far North Queensland.
The Sugarcane Kids and the Red-Bottomed Boat would make a fabulous class novel. As well as being a great read there is so much to learn and discuss such as the behaviour of crocodiles, environmental issues, life in the tropics, friendships, bullying and importantly how to work collaboratively as a team. A delightful new book, hopefully a series, for those middle-grade readers who look for adventure, danger and overcoming challenging obstacles. Teacher's notes are available.
