Evvie Chambers is doing her best to skate through the last month of high school to graduation. The only thing standing in her way is a biology report on foxes—and her teacher, Mrs. Audrey Dearborn. The same Mrs. Dearborn who’s been a thorn in Evvie’s side for years, refusing to acknowledge or accommodate her neurodiversity. Evvie would much rather be doing her report on Aretha, the octopus she cares for when she volunteers at the Minnesota Zoo but deviating from the exact assignment isn’t allowed—and Mrs. Dearborn isn’t going to make following the rules easy.
Evvie’s only escape from high school hell is the Lair: a safe haven for kids whose brains need some time away. But when Mrs. Dearborn refuses Evvie’s pleas to finesse the final report assignment to her strengths, and persistent bully Vandal McDaniel directs his harassment toward Lair members, Evvie finds herself more desperate than ever for stability and support.
When a shocking act of violence pushes the whole mess over the edge, Evvie, with the help of her friends and the others who love her, will have to figure out how to find her place in the wide world, while remaining true to herself.
Evvie is a recently diagnosed neurodivergent student, struggling to make up a year she missed during a depressive episode. She's working out what she likes, what she doesn't, and how the people around her are going to react to her, trying to find her place in the world.
I love the writing here. Evvie is vivid and very real. As a cat owner, I agree with everything mentioned about Popcorn. They certainly have never ever been fed once they smell something good! I love that the author doesn't use any labels for anyone; it's simply described as 'I tell him my label' and we're left to infer it from behaviour, or ignore it as it really doesn't matter what the specific label is.
However, this is one of those uncomfortable reads where I find myself agreeing, at least a little, with the 'bad guy'. Don't get me wrong; Mrs Dearborn was nasty and mean and shouldn't be in power over children. But that doesn't mean that Evvie can make up her own rules for an assignment just because she didn't like the original. Part of the point of school is to prepare children for the 'real' world; when Evvie gets a job, she won't be able to ignore a report because it's boring, or do something other than her assigned tasks because they're more fun. While every child deserves to be accommodated to a certain degree, this has to be balanced with the requirements of school.
Also, on the subject of the Lair; Evvie specifically says that more students than teachers know about it, which seems unsustainable from a safety point of view. As far as we know only one teacher is aware or has a key for it. What happens if there's a fire drill, or (this is set in America, after all) a shooter, and those children can't be accounted for because no one knows they're hiding out in the band closet? I think as a concept, the Lair is fantastic, and I wish there'd been something like it in my school, but it really does need to be under administrative control. I'm not saying children should need to sign in and out, it doesn't have to be that rigid, but the school needs to know where it is and who the regular users are, in case the only teacher who knows about it is absent. Perhaps it could be run by the school counselors?
These are story points, though, they don't affect the quality of the writing, and I really did enjoy the read. Watching the kids camouflage every time they leave the Lair was amazing, and seeing Evvie come into her power at the end was so satisfying. Definitely worth a read to see what some students are struggling with, and how - hopefully - there's always a safety net if you just look for it.
Rules for Camouflage publishes on the 18th June, 2024. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.
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