Publication Date: 6 May 2021

The Blurb

Queenie stares out at the ocean and dreams of a world beyond her small-town. She’s about to get her wish…

When the priceless recipe to the world’s most popular drink – thought to be lost forever – washes up at her feet, Queenie’s life instantly changes. Everyone wants it, and with a $10 million bounty on her head, Queenie’s soon on the run. Pursued by bounty hunters, black-ops helicopters and angry mobs, Queenie’s journey involves a trip to Area 51, a man-eating alligator and an unlikely new friend, Todd. But being on the run also makes Queenie begin to see the world around her more clearly – a world in which a big corporation’s excess has left the planet covered in its plastic bottles and waste. Suddenly, the home she always dreamed of escaping, and the ocean she grew up with and took for granted, don’t seem so bad.

If Queenie and Todd can bring down the bad guys, maybe she can go back home and make a difference…

The Review

Having loved Kick, it has seemed like a very long wait for the next book from Mitch Johnson, but it was well worth it! Funny, insightful and brilliantly entertaining, Pop! is a jaw-dropping look at consumerism and profiteering above all else, and fizzy drink addiction.

I loved travelling with Queenie and Todd, watching their relationship develop as they evade the eyes of a nation. The exaggerated boardroom scenes are both hilarious and horrifying.

Mitch combines the perfect amounts of satire, suspense and serious laughs to create a gripping story fizzing with flabbergasting moments where I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I mainly laughed, but when you stop and think…

There is a big environmental message woven throughout Pop! and you must read Mitch’s afterword which explains why we all have a part to play in looking after our planet.

Huge thanks to Orion Children’s Books for sending me a copy.