Dayle Campbell Gaetz. Crossbow
Orca $9.95  ISBN 978-1- 55143-841-2  108 pg.
Reviewed by Tianna, Age 11

"The gun's loaded, Matt. Put it down right now and move away from the door."
"No, it’s not yours. I’m taking it with me." I pointed it at him. "Back off!"
"Get away from that door!" he shouted and launched himself at me.

Wild and free; Matt’s dream... to be like the forest; a hermit. Matthew is in love with the forest. He lives in a small town but builds his own cabin up on a small mountain. He wants to be alone, but he finds a homeless man in HIS cabin that took him all summer to build, using HIS stuff. Suddenly mysterious break-ins happen. Could this be the thief, the man who calls himself Forrest?  Now the strange thing about these robberies is that the Thoughtful Thief as they call him, always takes his shoes off at the door. Why?

Crossbow is a fun book and it made me feel like part of the wild. Like a cougar rustling through the bushes, spying while this whole story was taking place, I was there with them; they just couldn’t see me. I liked this book for its description, characters and detail. Other books by this author include: Spoiled Rotten and Something Suspicious in Saskatchewan. I would recommend this book for ages 9 and up.

I give Crossbow 4 wild stars.