GNAT STOKES AND THE FOGGY BOTTOM SWAMP QUEEN
by Sally M. Keehn
Philomel Books
ISBN: 0399242872
Ages 8-12
160 pages

The year is 1868, but in the back woods of Tennessee, the Civil War is still brewing. Twelve-year-old Gnat Stokes, whose mother abandoned her at birth and whose "no-good pappy" is a "thieving Rebel," lives with her grandfather in Mary's Cove. Gnat has a reputation as a troublemaker, but secretly she just wants to learn about the world --- she loves reading, and desperately wants to go to school.

Mary's Cove is surrounded by misty, creepy swamplands, presided over by the evil Foggy Bottom Swamp Queen, Zelda, and her army of bogie monsters known as Swamp Knights. Seven years earlier, Zelda, who often takes the form of a panther, kidnapped the handsome youth Goodlow Pryce. Since then, Goodlow's sweetheart, Penelope Drinkwater, has pined over her lost love.

Gnat wants to like Penelope, but when a talking cat (soon named Eatmore Beans) delivers an enchanted locket with a cryptic message from Goodlow, Gnat intercepts it and finds herself head over heels in love with Goodlow. Soon Gnat and her three friends are on a quest to rescue Goodlow so that Gnat can become a town hero and find true love.

GNAT STOKES AND THE FOGGY BOTTOM SWAMP QUEEN is written from Gnat's perspective, in a folksy, down-home tone that lends ambience to this Appalachian tale. Inspired by the old Scottish ballad "Tam Lin," GNAT STOKES draws on many folk traditions, but also includes more modern touches such as Gnat's infatuation with LITTLE WOMEN and a running joke about the adverse effects of eating too many beans.

With its Southern tone, dramatic and humorous scenes, and unforgettable heroine, GNAT STOKES AND THE FOGGY BOTTOM SWAMP QUEEN feels like an old-fashioned yarn people used to tell around the camp fire, making it an ideal story for families to read aloud together.

   --- Reviewed by Norah Piehl

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