Rating: 2
Description: Annie Ireland is shocked when the doll she's taking care of for her Life Skills class saves her from a house fire by shouting at her to wake up and get out of the house. However, she's even more shocked when a humorous story she wrote for English class causes her to be arrested. Annie is sent to jail for a week along with her friend Roach Boy (or Arby), who stood up for her in court. When they get out, their parents ship them off to the Back to Basics Center, a wilderness school for "problem" kids. Luckily, Annie is allowed to bring her doll. Pantagruel Primo, Esquire (P.P. for short) is really a leprechaun imprisoned in the doll by his arch-nemesis, Slurpagar the Quaint, and he's dedicated to helping Annie and Arby get out of the mess they were unfairly thrown into. The Back to Basics Center is a less-than-fun boot camp-type school, and the other kids in their group are certainly "troubled". Not to mention Brad and Sophie, the sadistic counselors, and money-hungry Dr. Smithers and his wife Dolores, who run the camp. Can Annie, Arby, and Primo escape from the Center with their sanity intact, and will Slurpagar the Quaint ever return P.P. to his former self?
Review: A bizarre, satirical book, "Hard Time" puts a never-before-seen twist on fantasy. However, the fantasy seems like a side note and isn't developed enough to make it worthwhile. Primo seems like a plot device that's used for humor and to get Annie and Arby out of tight spots that they certainly could have gotten out of themselves with a little imagination, and his story distracts from the overall tale of the teens. This book could have done well as a straight satire, but in trying to incorporate fantasy and humor and dumbing down the story, the author loses most of any value the book may have had.