The Groundworld Heroes by Adrian So

The Groundworld Heroes by Adrian So
Publisher:  Monarch Education Services
Format:   E-ARC 
Genre: Chapter Book 
Number of pages:  149 
Source:  Author
Publishing: August 6th, 2024

Links: Website / Facebook / Twitter

Opening Line:  "There was never a bright day in Soiland, for it was thousands of bunny-hops below the human's feet." 

Junior mole digger, Benjamin Mole lives in Soiland, a community inhabited by moles, aardvarks, rats, hare's and its many other furry citizens.   Soiland was a tranquil place until the day a huge industrial bucket began to excavate the rocky barrier separating it from above ground.  Suddenly, rocks and dirt began cascading onto the city, shining a blinding light upon the citizens below. To escape the humans, the moles began to dig a new tunnel, during which Benjamin finds a Dragonfly fossil.  Per protocol, he takes it to be identified, which leads to his separation from the rest of the town, who have since evacuated.  Just as Benjamin tries to catch up to them, he encounters an injured meerkat, Connor.  Benjamin stops to help him, but then humans with shotguns and a shocking device corner them and he's forced to abandon Connor.  

 

Meanwhile the citizens of Soiland enter Puddleland, where they're seized by the king and queen's soldiers.  The queen demands they be thrown into "the House," but the king suggests a vote to determine their fate.  At the same time, Benjamin begins to worry about what happened to Connor, who has since been captured by the humans.  While searching Benjamin ends up falling into the same tunnel used by the citizens of Soiland, and by following it to the end eventually reconnects with them.   Benjamin is valuable in getting Soiland and Puddleland to rally their forces against the human's and rescue Connor. 

The Groundworld Heroes is an engaging story of animals uniting to prevent the destruction of their home and to rescue one of their friends. I enjoyed the creative and humorous word combinations that the author used, like "mole-ments," and "a one in four mole chance."  The author uses complex words to convey his ideas, which I think will help enhance the readers vocabulary.  The main character, Benjamin is at first portrayed as being very fearful, and unsure of what he can possibly do to help or has to offer anyone.   He's an unlikely candidate to do something heroic, which makes it even more fun to see him taking a risk, summoning his courage, and acting bravely.  The final resolution of how Benjamin deals with the humans is done very well (I can't go into too much detail as I don't want to spoil anything) but it was a nice surprise ending.  Overall, this was a wonderful adventure filled with themes of bravery, teamwork and friendship.  Again, congratulations Adrian, wishing you tremendous success with your upcoming release. 

 About the author

Adrian So, a promising 14-year-old writer who resides in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. In his leisure time, he enjoys reading, writing, spending time with his lively group of friends, and playing soccer. He is currently in junior high and will soon transition to high school.