On close inspection there was nothing really extraordinary about it. It had a hick coat of thorny barbs and the branches snaked out from the trunk sideways before turning to the sun.
But it gave me the heebie-jeebies. There was something about it. Its branches seemed alive somehow – ready to grab. It had an aura – a dark, sinister aura.
Get a grip, I told myself. You’re losing it! It’s a C-A-C-T-U-S.
When Jayden is sent to stay with his rellies that he hardly knows, he thinks things can’t get any worse. But he’s wrong. The rellies live in the country, in a town with no skate park. What’s worse, they are cactus freaks, with a yard full of spiky plants. Then, when Aunty Nina and Uncle Trev buy a new cactus, things get really freaky. The cactus seems to be coming alive.
Freaky is a fun, but scary, tale based on an urban legend which sounds frighteningly true involving spiders and cacti. Jayden’s adventure is fast-paced and short enough to entice the most reluctant reader.
Part of the wonderful Lightning Strikes series from Walker Books, Freaky is a great offering for primary aged readers.
Freaky, by Sue Whiting
Walker Books, 2009