Review of Ragamuffin

[Rebeca Silvestre]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Ragamuffin" by Murray Bishoff.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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Ragamuffin by Murray Bishoff tells Ellie Pichguss’ family story. Ellie’s parents work at a cannabis plantation in an isolated place. One day, her father urges her to abandon their family home and hide so that their employers don’t find her. She is, therefore, forced to live with strangers in a small town. It is inspiring to learn about this girl’s courage to survive on her own. Fortunately, she is able to count on her neighbours, school friends and the police chief. Two of her neighbours not only help her to keep her secret but show her how to protect herself in case her parents’ employers come looking for her.

The story is narrated from several characters’ point of view. For example, one of them thoroughly describes an unusual investigation carried out in the town that is related to the dealers.

It reminds me of slavery, using people with little resources to work on the land, until one of its members achieves to run away and report their situation to someone able to help them.

It is a slow-paced novel. Its strength lies in Ellie’s determination to find her family and live together again and also, the description of the daily life in a small town. It even describes the water supply system which can, on the other hand, discourage some readers.

There is a couple of far-fetched scenes when teenagers manage to get rid of a gang of men working for the drug dealers and then, a little girl successfully sneaks out of her room with 2 grown-ups in there. Apart from that, the end of the story is unexpectedly narrated in barely 2 pages.

My rating for this novel is 3 out of 5. It’s not a top-rated novel because it lacks some realistic action. Nonetheless, there are only a few mistakes. In short, I recommend this book to those craving for crime novels.

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Ragamuffin
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