Pura Belpré honoree and Edgar Award Winner Adrianna Cuevas is back with an epic story about the creatures people think only exist in stories and a Cuban American boy who must join forces with his friends to protect them from a greedy corporation looking to make a profit off of the reserve they live on.
Jordi Acosta wants nothing more than to be invisible. He’s a six-foot-tall twelve-year-old who wishes he could blend in with the rest of his classmates and avoid trouble.
Over spring break, Jordi’s mom, a wildlife biologist, has him volunteer at the Yaupon Creek Wildlife Refuge, much to his dismay. But Mami is keeping secrets, and when Jordi has a close encounter with a surprisingly humanlike bear, she comes clean: Her unofficial job at the wildlife refuge is to care for cryptids, creatures like the chupacabra that are only supposed to exist in stories.
When a greedy corporation called Harvest Sunrise Global Energy arrives wanting to expand their drilling operations, cattle start getting injured and fences damaged on local farms Jordi and his friends realize that the company is manipulating the townspeople to believe the creatures are responsible for the damage. It’s up to them to save their town from this insidious threat—and clear their cryptid friends’ names.
Perfect for fans of Greenwild and Jasmine Warga, this fun-filled adventure is sure to delight animal-loving readers who are craving a nature romp.
