An Adolescent’s Soul Grows in the North Woods Book Review

Full disclosure: The author of the book that I am about to review is a patron at a library that I work at. All of the opinions stated in this review are solely mine.

I’ve been reviewing Robert C. Jones’s “North Woods” series for a while now, and I’ve always been curious to see how it would evolve. We started off with Bobby trying to protect a fox and her pups in The Tale of the Red Fox in the North Woods. Then, there was him realizing that adults keep secrets while people are injured and murdered while a new hospital is being built in A Young Soul Maturing during Another Summer in the North Woods on the Big Lake. Where will he go from here? Well, Jones’s next title An Adolescent’s Soul Grows in the North Woods answers that question. It’s a nice evolution in the story with its maturing tone and some developing relationships.

 An Adolescent’s Soul Grows in the North Woods is about the now teenager Bob as he visits his aunt and uncle during another summer in the North Woods. Bobby, now Bob, has spent his summer vacations with his uncle and aunt at their Northern Woods resort for over ten years. This time, he bonds with his uncle on their many adventures together. They fish and go to the dump. They also find a dead body along with a strange contraption in a shed, so they investigate. Wherever Uncle goes, Bob goes with him. In addition, he has experiences with other characters like Daniel, Janina, Heather, and Mr. Way the butcher.

While the previous two books targeted late elementary-middle school kids, this is for an early teen audience. Bobby is now 15 years old, and he’s maturing. He’s starting to view the opposite sex in a different way. Bobby had some feelings for Janina in A Young Soul. Here, he ponders whether or not age matters when one is in love and is introduced to Heather – Janina’s outgoing younger sister. She too is 15 years old. He develops feelings for her during the course of the book.

Additionally, he’s beginning to see how not everything is black and white. This translates into the story itself, where nothing is clear cut. This is a mass departure from the other “North Woods” books, where things were neatly resolved. Even the obviously evil villain who appears in one scene may not be the culprit. It’s a nice evolution in Bob’s story.

There are two parts in the book. The first involves the adventures Bob has during the summer. The second part sees him visiting his aunt and uncle again for Thanksgiving. While the first two books end on a satisfying note and a learning moment, this one concludes on a somber tone. All I can say about it is that it kind of comes out of nowhere, but it fits with the maturing mood of the story.

Another part that I enjoyed was the bond between Bob and Uncle. In the previous novels, Uncle is a mentor to Bob. Here, there are more on equal footing. Uncle lets his nephew in on more adult matters like business deals that he has going on. Moreover, he allows Bob to work on tasks that he didn’t have before. For example, he trusts Bob to measure out the land that he and Aunt recently purchased for a new home and to help him while they fish. I like how Uncle is willing to be more transparent due to the events that transpired in A Young Soul.

I only have one complaint. I wish Daniel and his family had more spotlight. They are mostly in the scene, in which Bob goes to Daniel’s sister’s quinceañera. He spends most of that time embracing Mexican culture and bonding with Heather. Later on, Daniel gets accused of committing the crime mentioned earlier. However, readers never find out what he feels about it, for the focus is about Bob and his increasingly conflicted emotions about everything. Daniel is more involved in A Young Soul, so this is a bit of a letdown. I wish we would get to know him more as a character and not just as a vessel for Bob to learn more about migrant workers in Northern Michigan.

An Adolescent’s Soul Grows in the North Woods by Robert C. Jones is a good continuation of the “North Woods” series. While I might prefer the other titles, I appreciate its change of tone. It’s maturer than the others with Bob feeling conflicted on a lot of things and how not everything is clear-cut. I also enjoy how Bob and Uncle bond more on an equal level as the former comes into his own. I would recommend it for 13-15 year olds, especially if they like coming-of-age stories as well as their grandparents who want to relive their younger days and love Jones’s other books. Like before, I’m curious to see how Jones continues with the “North Woods” series.

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