FernFolio

Dragged on a day-long field trip to the Black Vine swamp in Florida’s everglades by Mrs. Starch, their terror of a science teacher, Nick Waters, his friend Marta Gonzalaz, and the rest of their class from Truman School scramble to record the names of plants and animals knowing full well that they will be tested on their knowledge.  But the field trip ends abruptly when a wildfire breaks out and everyone is ordered back to the buses by Mrs. Starch who then disappears into the fire zone.
Though Dr. Dressler, the school’s headmaster, claims that he has received a letter from Mrs. Starch requesting a leave of absence due to a family crisis, Nick is suspicious.  He happens to know that Mrs. Starch doesn’t have any family.  So Nick decides to nose around and get to the bottom of his teacher’s sudden disappearance, one that is in marked contrast to her usual perfect attendance.  Anything is better than sitting around worrying why his soldier father hasn’t sent his daily e-mails from Iraq.
Accompanied by a reluctant Marta, Nick checks out Mrs. Starch’s house, which turns out to be every bit as creepy as students have rumoured, and gets caught inside her house by a strange man named Twilly.  Things heat up when the local fire investigator decides that the fire at Black Vine swamp was deliberately set, and police start questioning students in Nick’s class, particularly Duane Smoke Scrod Jr, who happens to be on probation for two previous convictions for arson.
But how does the Red Diamond Energy Corporation pen, found at the scene of the fire tie into the story, and did Marta and Nick actually hear a panther scream in Black Vine swamp just before the fire broke out?
Carl Hiaasen’s Scat is a terrific story about some kids and their teacher who join forces with a mysterious environmentalist to expose the illegal activities of an oil company and save an environmentally threaten animal.  Written with humour and passion, this adventure is a sure winner!
FernFolio Editor