Camp So-and-So by Mary McCoy

Synopsis: 

The letters went out in mid-February. Each letter invited its recipient to spend a week at Camp So-and-So, a lakeside retreat for girls nestled high in the Starveling Mountains. Each letter came with a glossy brochure with photographs of young women climbing rocks, performing Shakespeare under the stars, and spiking volleyballs. By the end of the month, twenty-five applications had been completed, signed, and mailed. Had any of these girls tried to visit the camp for themselves on that day in February, they would have discovered that there was no such mountain, and that no one within a fifty-mile radius had ever heard of Camp So-and-So . . .

My Thoughts:

I have similar feelings about this book as I do The Library of Mount Char by Scott Hawkins. Both are unconventional novels, and I admire what each is doing, but neither are what I'd call enjoyable reads.

Camp So-and-So is supposed to be a summer camp in the middle of nowhere, where disadvantaged kids are allowed to experience nature and do all kinds of fun camp activities. Instead, the five cabins of campers find themselves in unique nightmare situations. One group is launched into a competition they can't win, one is thrust into the world of a serial killer, one group embarks on a dangerous quest, etc. 

I think this is part of the problem for me. The cast of characters is huge - 25 current campers alone, not including counselors and other unsavory creatures lurking about. Some of the campers are unnamed, but others are clearly portrayed as being sympathetic protagonists. I just didn't have enough time to spend with each of them. It was hard to keep track of everyone's names, much less the details. . 

I liked some of the twists, but others just didn't work for me. That said, I'm glad I read this book - it was inventive, and not something I'll soon forget. 


Have you read Camp So-and-So? What did you think?