When Sam, his mum and half-sister Tegan move to Cornwall from London, he can’t think of anything worse… until he meets his gorgeous neighbour Jade that is. Jade and her friends, a ragtag group of surfers, take Sam under their wing and Sam, infatuated with Jade, is desperate to lose his status as a “kook” (a beginner surfer). He spends hours out catching waves and getting more familiar with the brilliant rush that surfing gives you but Jade is focused on one thing, riding the legendary “Devils Horns”, a feat that will make her name as a professional surfer. The only problem is that nobody knows where these infamous waves are, but Sam is a self-confessed nerd for all things scientific and might be able to help her out.
The main thing that stuck out for me with this book was the character of Jade; from the beginning she seemed like a bit of a “manic pixie dream girl”, a shallow, quirky character whose only function seems to be to teach the protagonist, who is usually obsessed with her, to embrace life. When I realised that she seemed to fit this trope, I found her slightly annoying as it seemed as if she was completely crafted to suit the taste of teenage boys like Sam. I became more willing to like her as it became apparent that this image is probably due to the fact that we only ever see her through the eyes of Sam, whose narrative will naturally focus on her as some sort of “dream girl”. A comparison between Jade and Alaska from John Green’s Looking For Alaska jumps to mind as they both serve to “open up” the minds of the male protagonist while each having their own private issues that the protagonist wants to help them out of, giving a more deconstructed version of this trope.
This book was actually really fun to read. Sam is a really likeable character and it was full of fast-paced action. I was quite sniffy about it for a long way into this book because I was getting fed up with the recurring theme of Sam explaining fairly basic scientific concepts to Jade who just encouraged his ego by fawning over the fact that the Earth is actually moving. However as the book continued I actually felt myself growing to love these characters and the ending really hit me with unexpected emotion. This book has a huge heart to it and feels really well written throughout, particularly in any scene in which the characters go surfing. It’s evident that Chris Vick has a lot of experience and passion for this sport and this book will engage even those who would rather not spend an afternoon in the freezing British waters.
Kook is a hard book to define: it’s fun but also dark, fast-paced but still reflective and joyful with plenty of sadness interspersed. Surfing fans will love Kook but another part of its appeal for me was the introduction into this amazing world, which I had absolutely no knowledge of before, so I would recommend it to anyone who is curious about it. I was hesitant about it but Kook turned out to be a really enjoyable read.
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