Camp Outlook
- Author Name: Brenda Baker
- Award Year: 2015
- Publisher: Second Story Press
- Author Website: http://www.brendabaker.com/
- Tags: Nominee 2015, Shortlist: Fiction Award, Shortlist: Young Adult Literature Award, Young Adult Literature Award
About the Book
Shannon is thrilled when her mom becomes pregnant. After years of hoping and praying, her mom and dad are expecting again and Shannon will have a little brother or sister to play with. They will be a normal, happy family. Shannon likes normal. As an experienced middle-schooler, she knows that she does not want to stand out, to be weird or different.
But when her baby brother is born, things do not go according to plan. Shannon doesn’t know how to cope. Isn’t God supposed to answer your prayers, especially the important ones? But God does not seem to be following the rules. So Shannon becomes an atheist. Twice. And she does something that is so out of character, not even she can explain it.
Shannon is sent – against her will – to Camp Outlook, which turns out to have its fair share of people who don’t exactly follow the rules. While there, Shannon has several bizarre experiences, crushes on the student minister (who happens to look like Jesus), and starts to re-consider how important being “normal” really is.
About the Author
Brenda Baker, both a writer and performer, is best known as a singer for young audiences – she has recorded three CDs for kids. In 2005 Brenda founded Kids of Note, a choir for children with and without disabilities who love to sing. Brenda lives in Saskatoon with her husband, writer Arthur Slade, and their daughter.