Spud – Exit, Pursued by a Bear is the fourth and final installment in John van de Ruit’s highly successful (at least in South Africa) Spud-series chronicling the adventures of one self-conscious teenager as he navigates the perils of boarding school.

For those of you unfamiliar with the series, John “Spud” Milton is a South African boy from a middle class family in the suburbs of Pietermaritzburg.  He wins a scholarship to attend Michaelhouse, a prestige boarding school left over from the days of British colonialism.  Spud differs from the other boys in the school as his parents aren’t wealthy (or classy) and when the first novel starts he also hasn’t yet hit puberty.  And he keeps a journal.  In fact, that’s what we get to read, as the novels are written in the style of Spud’s personal journal, one novel for each year in the school. Continue reading “KokkieH Reviews Spud – Exit, Pursued by a Bear by John van de Ruit” →