Ink Me
by Richard Scrimger
Orca Book Publishers, 2012
ISBN 9781459800 (sc)
ISBN 9781459800 (epub)
$9.95, 224 pp, ages 10+
orcabook.com
My favourite character in this story is Bunny because he is adventurous, kind and clueless.
This story takes place in downtown Toronto. When Bunny’s grandfather dies he gives Bunny a task of getting a tattoo since his grandfather didn’t get one when he was young. When Bunny gets the wrong tattoo he gets into a lot of trouble. The tattoo is a gang tattoo that was meant for someone else. Benny becomes part of the gang. He meets a lot of people who help him and others that make his troubles worse. Bunny thinks that the gang members are his friends, but the members think he is just part of the gang. When Bunny is with the gang they get chased and put into jail. In the end Bunny meets the boy with the tattoo that was meant for Bunny, but by this time the tattoo Bunny got has changed his life.
The story makes me think of the things I received after my Papa passed away. Something that I liked about the story is how Bunny had a learning difficulty that made it hard for him to spell. The story is written just the way Bunny would spell the words, the way the words sound to him. I found it hard to read at first, but after a while it became easier.
Review by Connor, age 11, grade 6.
This review is from Canadian Teacher Magazine’s Apr/May 2014 issue.
