Loch, by Paul Zindel (Book Review)

 

Loch and his sister have always tagged along on their father’s scientific expeditions tracking down animal legends. Their father's boss, Cavenger, a ruthless man, is determined to prove that the legends are fact. Until now, it has been a pointless effort. Then, on a routine exploration, a hideous plesiosaur-like creature attacks their boat. As more of this odd beast population is spotted, Loch encounters a small baby plesiosaur and realizes that the monsters only attack when threatened. He risks his life along with his sister and friend to save the prehistoric creatures from extinction…

“The hunters have become the hunted!”

I know you probably see this and think, Is she serious? Erm, well, yes. Loch by Paul Zindel is a book that has been a thing in my family since my dad was a kid. The totally reasoning behind reading this book is to join in on the jokes and references my family pulls from it. 

While this is considered a horror book, it’s one of the cringiest books I have ever read, and that’s the point—to be cringe. Even just be reading the quotes, you can tell! My brother read this and then told me I had to, mid laugh. We shared it with our friends too cause, like I said, it isn’t meant to be taken literally. It’s for the good of the joke. 

Now, I could see a younger reader enjoying this. Zindel actually wrote it for the purpose of sparking reading in young kids. The mystery and empathetic vibes are there. It’s literally about an older brother and his sister (#Zaidee! She is the best part of this book. Her humor was actually hilarious, but would probably go over younger readers heads), as well as their friend. It’s got that adventurous Hardy Boy’s vibes, just on a different scale. 

Being that it is a horror book though, I'm not honestly sure what age with would be for—maybe 11-12? Like I said, the whole story is super cringy, but there is some more disturbing scenes I guess you’d say—it would honestly depend on the kid. Multiple scenes of blood—including legs and heads being broken off. A guy pulls a human limb out of the water, a man is killed in the beginning while on their boat and someone dies at the end as well. No other content to note. Like I said, it’s profoundly for children, just with some violence as mention. 

Really just read this book for a good afternoon—I read it in 24 hours easily—and for the jokes. The lines are hilarious and are still being brought up in my friend circle. While comparing this to others books, this one easily sucked, but is amazing in the world of cringes. 

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