Review by Frank Plowright

Stuck is the first time Kayla Miller has repeated a theme in seven books, but taking Olive back to summer camp provides a very different experience from her time there in Camp. The cover represents the content extremely well, as unlike last time the weather isn’t fine for two weeks, and unlike last time friends Bree and Max aren’t getting along.

Olive is again accompanied by Willow, but as her problems with participation were resolved last time, she’s infrequently seen. Attending camp with them is the more disruptive Nat, whose confrontational personality diminishes slightly when Olive discovers a vulnerability. Bree and Max’s argument, though, consistently disrupts everyone else’s fun because they won’t work together, and neither will tell Olive what their problem is. Because she’s a kindly soul Olive feels she has to somehow try to bring them together again. There’s considerable subtlety to Miller’s writing, and it takes a while before it’s pointed out to Olive that this isn’t her responsibility and they’re old enough to sort out their own problem.

Miller’s method of telling a story is incredibly deceptive. Quite a bit happens and problems are resolved, but there’s always a few pages available for one of Olive’s strange dreams or for the young children just enjoying themselves.

There’s funding possibly available for improvements to the camp, and the attendees are asked for suggestions as to how it can be applied. Olive thinks a good start would be to begin some projects before a decision is made, and the children discover the camp cook is big recycling fan. Unusually for this series, Miller seems to want to get something off her chest, and the scene becomes preaching, particularly with regard to the difficulty of recycling certain items and the effort required. While everyone should do their bit, perhaps the onus is on the authorities to be more efficient and their messaging clearer rather than expecting children to know complex conditions. Recycling is a theme Miller returns to in the notes after the story.

Another aspect of the series as a whole is how Miller has gradually built the cast. What Olive has learned in previous stories has value here. It’s another joyous outing for Olive and her friends.