I have always loved books about animals: wild, domesticated, or imaginary. This book would have been right up my alley when I was in fourth or fifth grade.
It is about Lucy (12), who wanted desperately to join the Wildlands Ambassadors at their nearby Wildlands Safari Park. But there was an incident with something she couldn’t do during her interview for the position (panic attack due to fear of heights).
Now she has another chance. She has been invited to join a team of others her age for the Wildlands Safari Escape Challenge. They will help test the clues and systems in the park before the event goes public.
The clues are interspersed in the book and are a variety of puzzles and brain challenges for animal lovers – a mystery is also thrown in when it looks like some of the systems have been tampered with. The electronics fizzle, the gates don’t work, the walkie-talkies are on the fritz, and some enclosures are empty or have the wrong animals in them.
Can they beat the puzzles and find out what is going on? Get yourself a pencil and paper to help out!
Richards, Natalie D. Survive This Safari. Delacorte Press, 2025.
