Music for Tigers

Kadarusman, Michelle. Music for Tigers

November 5, 2024 by Pajama Press

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Louisa isn't thrilled about going to Tasmania to spend the summer with her Unlce Rufus while her mother and father are slogging around wetlands studying endangered toads, but since her older system visited when she was Louisa's age, and the camp is going to be razed to make way for an access road and bridge for local tin and iron mines, they want Louisa to experience it. Louisa, for her part, would rather stay at home and practice her violin so that she has a successful try out for the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. Instead, she's relegated to a musty cabin deep in the woods, where all manner of creepy creatures stare at her from the darkness, and giant spiders take up residence on her bedroom walls! Uncle Ruff isn't a great housekeeper, and his cooking leaves something to be desired, but luckily Mel, who runs the "next door" Eco Lodge, steps up to help. Of course, "next door" in this area involves a car ride, but she brings food, helps Louisa clean, and even has her son, Colin, stay with Rufus so Louisa has someone her age to talk to. Colin is on the Autism Spectrum and sometimes struggles to connect to people, but seems to get along with Louisa, and she enjoys his company as well. Rufus has a pig footed bandicoot named Piggy who is ailing, and he's very upset because the animal is the last of its kind, and the species was thought to be extinct in the 1950s. He encourages Louisa to read the journals of her great Grandmother Eleanor, who spent years trying to bring back not only the bandicoot, but also the Tasmanian tiger, also thought to be extinct. Louisa finds that there is one remaining Tasmanian tiger, a marsupial with tiger like markings, who has been close to the house, enticed, perhaps, by the music of her violin. Rufus tells her and Colin that Eleanor had relocated the animals to Convict's Rock, an island that local legend deemed to be haunted, so the animals lived in peace. With the new bridge and access road, the rock will be destroyed, so Rufus wants to relocate the animal, whom he calls Ellie. In order to do this, they need to be able to safely trap the animal. Since Ellie seems to enjoy Louisa's music, they try to lure her out, but start to realize that they need to go to the island to find the animal. Will they be able to relocate the animal in time?
Strengths: I would have loved this book as a child, since it is a virtual trip to a place that I will probably never get to visit. While Louisa isn't all that keen on going, she quickly gets over herself, and doesn't complain too much, even though the living conditions aren't that great. She throws herself into researching family history, and is willing to try to help the Tasmanian tiger that meant so much to her family. She is also kind to Colin, and there is some good information about Austism Spectrum Disorder. There are also some great notes from the author; as far as she knows, the bandicoot and Tasmanian tiger have been extinct for a long time, but there is some hope that perhaps they can be brought back. Readers who enjoyed this author's Girl of the Southern Sea will want to take a look at this title. 
Weaknesses: I found myself humming Waltzing Matilda for hours after I read this! Today's readers probably won't be familiar with this tune, and I did enjoy reading a little history of the song, but I could not get it out of my head! 
What I really think: Readers who enjoyed stories about helping endangered animals, like Haas' Rescue, Marquez' Crocodile Rescue, or Schrefer's Ape Quartet will enjoy this virtual trip to Tasmania.