Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

This reads like an introductory sci-fi/dystopian fiction for middle school. I loved it. It took a little bit to figure out what was happening, but before long I was completely immersed in the story. Also - phenomenal vocabulary throughout which was super fun!

Quite frankly, this book was a bit odd. It’s a very interesting premise but I did spend much of the book trying to figure out whether this was actually a fantasy world, futuristic, or a dream-state and I’m not totally convinced that all the loose ends were neatly tied up to make this world fully understandable.

Still it’s quite fun and I love the obsession with learning new words (and the dictionary in the back!), and all the animal friends Beatrice makes in the forest. And I think it’d be a great read for Black and mixed-race kids as a lot of the MC’s focus is how proud she is of what she looks like and where she comes from.

That said, it was a lot more violent that I expected for a middle grade novel. There’s overt racism, support of segregation, and gun violence. I would’ve loved if it had been a joyful book about embracing Black beauty without setting that up in opposition to such violent rhetoric. I’m not all the familiar with middle grade to comment on how violence is typically handled in the genre, or how much of it is presented, but it felt very extreme to me.

A young girl wakes up in a treehouse in the Ariglia Forest. All she can remember is that her names is Beatrice. She soon realizes that she is living in a magical forest. Food appears while she is asleep. Beatrice can understand the animals and can speak to the rainbow. In the forest Beatrice meets a King Crocodile by the name of Harry. The unlikely pair manage to find common ground. As Beatrice learns to survive and explore the forest she begins to remember little bits of her past and about the world outside the forest.
In BEATRICE AND CROC HARRY, Lawrence Hill Bentley introduces themes of friendship, self awareness and prejudice with a cast of endearing characters.
BEATRICE AND CROC HARRY is a beautifully told story that leaves you wanting another adventure.
Thank you to Harper Collins Canada and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced digital edition of this book.

I have some mixed feelings about this book.
I think it provides a really powerful narrative on racism and class divisions. The discussion was very powerful. It is done in a really great way that kids will understand.
For a middle school novel, it has a fairly big vocabulary. I think it will lead to some frustration just because the context is hard to decipher. There is the dictionary in the back but it is hard to say if it will be found by kids while they are reading it.
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As an almost teacher, I see this book being a really great novel study. Because then kids are given context and they can learn about the features of the book like the dictionary. It can also help start discussions with students. But I see it being a struggle for many kids to just pick the book up and read it as a free reading book.

Beatrice and Croc Harry was such a fun read and a great debut into middle grade from Lawrence Hill. Beatrice is really a wonderful character to read from because she is so strong willed and firm in her intelligence and bravery. I also really loved the friendships she made with with both Croc Harry (a crocodile who learns to be a great friend) and Horace Harrison Junior the Third (a vibrant rabbit who is looking to learn and fit in). Their found family was absolutely adorable but also super funny in a way that can charm both middle grade readers and the adults in their lives. The novel is filled with discussion on said found families and finding solace within friendships, but it also takes the time to discuss themes of racism and oppression in a way that is understandable and thought provoking for the middle grade audience. The novel is also filled with word games and focusing on teaching its audience big words, which I thought was a really cute addition. I can see this being very fun and interesting for middle grade readers. My only complaint is that the worldbuilding is really confusing and can be a little convoluted, but otherwise this was fun!

Thank you Harper Collins Canada for the eARC! This was a really interesting book! I liked the idea of Beatrice living alone in the forest and having to solve riddles to find her way back home. This book has SO MANY messages about segregation, racism, gun violence, forgiveness, and empathy. It was a really emotional and touching book to read. I thought the difference between the forest of Argilia and her home was really fascinating because she lives in the forest and makes a good life for herself and makes friends etc. but at home she still has to do certain things to fit in and has specific ways to act whereas she was free in a sense in the forest. I loved the usage of vocabulary in this book because kids will learn so many new words that adults probably don’t even know 😂 There’s a dictionary at the end which was fun to read as well. Beatrice’s relationship with Croc Harry was also so sweet and it gets even more emotional when you find out who Croc Harry really is. I thought the book ended a little abruptly but that was really my only complaint lol—I wanted more.

4.5/5⭐

It only takes one word to describe this novel: delightful! Beatrice and Croc Harry is a reminder of the whimsy and wonder of the best bedtime stories, the ones that are clearly made up, that don’t rely on strict facts, but contain enough heart to make you want to believe.

The inclusion of words, real and concocted, is incredibly fun. Hill clearly finds joy in language, and he invites readers to do the same. And he does so without being too serious or like he’s forcing an educational component.

Even with the silliness of talking rainbows and high-flying rabbits, Hill still manages to include serious themes. Beatrice, a Black child, questions the labels used to describe her and ponders big questions about family, friends, and belonging. She faces dangers not only related to being on her own in an unfamiliar forest, but also from those would do her harm simply for the colour of her skin. Yet she demonstrates over and over her determination to stand up for herself and love herself as well as her friends. She is immensely endearing in her tenacity.

If this is what Lawrence Hill can offer young readers, may he long continue in this field.

This was a strange, lovely story. The official description -- an amnesiac girl in a treehouse, a talking crocodile -- had me entering the pages warily, unsure of what to expect. But Lawrence Hill is, obviously, a master writer, and BEATRICE AND CROC HARRY is unexpected in all the best ways.

Much of the plot is propelled by the mystery of Beatrice's situation, so I won't get too much into it. But I will say that underneath the playful exterior of talking animals, wordplay, and precocious girls, there is a deeper tale regarding racism, segregation, and violence. It's about finding bravery and finding your people. It's about moving onward. And it's about knowing which voices to let in, and which to keep out.

It certainly won't be a book for everyone. The plot occasionally felt glacial and repetitive, and while the wordplay was fun, it did sometimes feel ... well, borderline irritating. The worldbuilding was a little vague and left me with so many unanswered questions, I ended the book feeling slightly empty. I don't know what I'd expected.

I can see BEATRICE being a hit in classrooms, as it accessibly holds the door to many important conversations. While it's not one I'd necessarily revisit, I look forward to seeing what others think upon the book's release.

I abandoned this book at 20%. What might work as a bedtime story is too slow and long for a middle-grade book. The plot didn't seem to be moving forward, and I wasn't invested in the characters enough to keep going. I won't be purchasing this book for my collection.