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Bigfoot Crossing
Jay doesn't believe in Bigfoot.
His dad loves hunting for Bigfoot, but searching for a mythical creature in the dark isn't Jay's idea of fun. Especially because he always gets stuck looking out for his little sister while his dad plays with the cool gear, like night-vision goggles. But while out on a camping trip, a large creature starts hunting them, and then Jay’s father goes missing. Jay is forced to start tracking the creature himself while still keeping his sister safe. It turns out that not only is Bigfoot real but it isn't the only threat in the woods. There’s a different kind of monster out here, one who is armed with a gun. Jay must act fast to save his father before it’s too late. And he needs Bigfoot’s help to do it.
This high-interest Orca Currents book is written specifically for middle-schoolers reading below grade level.
His dad loves hunting for Bigfoot, but searching for a mythical creature in the dark isn't Jay's idea of fun. Especially because he always gets stuck looking out for his little sister while his dad plays with the cool gear, like night-vision goggles. But while out on a camping trip, a large creature starts hunting them, and then Jay’s father goes missing. Jay is forced to start tracking the creature himself while still keeping his sister safe. It turns out that not only is Bigfoot real but it isn't the only threat in the woods. There’s a different kind of monster out here, one who is armed with a gun. Jay must act fast to save his father before it’s too late. And he needs Bigfoot’s help to do it.
This high-interest Orca Currents book is written specifically for middle-schoolers reading below grade level.
- GenresMiddle GradeFantasy
128 pages, Paperback
Published February 14, 2023
14 people want to read
About the author
Gail Anderson-Dargatz
29 books339 followersWatch for Gail's new novel, The Almost Widow, a thriller, released May 2023.
GAIL ANDERSON-DARGATZ’s first novel, The Cure for Death by Lightning, was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and won the UK’s Betty Trask Award, the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and the Vancity Book Prize. Her second novel, A Recipe for Bees, was nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award and was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. The Spawning Grounds was nominated for the Sunburst Award and the Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award and short-listed for the Canadian Authors Association Literary Award for Fiction. Her thriller, The Almost Wife was a national bestseller in 2021, and her most recent novel, The Almost Widow, is out in May 2023.
Gail also writes young adult and hi-lo books for the educational market. Her book Iggy’s World was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and shortlisted for the Chocolate Lily Book Awards. The Ride Home was short-listed for the Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize, as well as the Red Cedar Fiction Award and the Chocolate Lily Book Award.
She taught for nearly a decade in the MFA program in creative writing at the University of British Columbia and now mentors writers online. Gail Anderson-Dargatz lives in the Shuswap region of British Columbia.
GAIL ANDERSON-DARGATZ’s first novel, The Cure for Death by Lightning, was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and won the UK’s Betty Trask Award, the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and the Vancity Book Prize. Her second novel, A Recipe for Bees, was nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award and was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. The Spawning Grounds was nominated for the Sunburst Award and the Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award and short-listed for the Canadian Authors Association Literary Award for Fiction. Her thriller, The Almost Wife was a national bestseller in 2021, and her most recent novel, The Almost Widow, is out in May 2023.
Gail also writes young adult and hi-lo books for the educational market. Her book Iggy’s World was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and shortlisted for the Chocolate Lily Book Awards. The Ride Home was short-listed for the Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize, as well as the Red Cedar Fiction Award and the Chocolate Lily Book Award.
She taught for nearly a decade in the MFA program in creative writing at the University of British Columbia and now mentors writers online. Gail Anderson-Dargatz lives in the Shuswap region of British Columbia.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 28, 2023
Main character Jay is frustrated. He didn’t want to go camping, he was tired of minding his younger sister Rose, and his dad kept them out in the woods searching for a Sasquatch, well past the time he should have fed the kids. Jay is also angry with his mum, who isn’t on the trip with them, and who left them a month earlier.
Their father’s dreams are answered, and the kids are separated from their dad, who has disappeared while chasing what he thinks is a sasquatch. Jay must protect his younger sister Rose, and figure out how to find his dad, and maybe make a discovery or two of his own about his family, his dad's obsession, and what's out in the woods.
The text, which is written for a young audience, is engaging, with Jay’s thoughts and emotions well drawn. There are plenty of scares, danger, action, humour and family drama to keep readers’ attention. Jay is a believable, engaging protagonist, and though this is a pretty short book, he grows up a little by the end.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Orca Book Publishers for this ARC in exchange for my review.
Their father’s dreams are answered, and the kids are separated from their dad, who has disappeared while chasing what he thinks is a sasquatch. Jay must protect his younger sister Rose, and figure out how to find his dad, and maybe make a discovery or two of his own about his family, his dad's obsession, and what's out in the woods.
The text, which is written for a young audience, is engaging, with Jay’s thoughts and emotions well drawn. There are plenty of scares, danger, action, humour and family drama to keep readers’ attention. Jay is a believable, engaging protagonist, and though this is a pretty short book, he grows up a little by the end.
Thank you to Netgalley and to Orca Book Publishers for this ARC in exchange for my review.
February 28, 2024
A fast read about a boy and his little sister who have an encounter with Bigfoot, and more dangerously, some Bigfoot seekers. I really liked the afterword where the author makes a case for “maybe”.
January 22, 2025
I read this book as part of my school book club it was great and I enjoyed reading it I would recommend it!
January 12, 2023
A fun, fast-paced read for students struggling with comprehension or those on a lower level. Jay’s narration is clean and all of the details and dialogue is sharp and easy to understand. I appreciate the author giving background info and examples of new concepts for those who may not know lots about these creatures. Thank you to Orca and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
April 24, 2023
I really enjoyed this quick story! Jay, a young boy, finds himself stuck in the woods taking care of his little sister after his dad has perhaps been abducted by Bigfoot. There were some well-developed conflicts in the story both for Jay, and for the other characters including Bigfoot. Jay's character was nicely developed over the course of the story. The only gap I felt that needed some additional time was the familial situation with the mom. It wasn't clear why she left or why her kids didn't want to see her at first. The only information readers got was from some texts that Jay kept reading. This was an unedited advanced copy of the story, so this may be the cause, but the texts from the mom where typed strangely. I wasn't sure if the mom left because of some issues she was having, leading to the strange texts, or if this was just something that still needed to be corrected in the final copies of the book.
The story was very fast paced and wasn't too challenging. A struggling YA reader would do well with this book and an reluctant reader would enjoy the suspense and the pace. Students who have parents that are going through divorces will also relate to this story. I'll be suggesting this book to my school librarian for our students.
The story was very fast paced and wasn't too challenging. A struggling YA reader would do well with this book and an reluctant reader would enjoy the suspense and the pace. Students who have parents that are going through divorces will also relate to this story. I'll be suggesting this book to my school librarian for our students.
January 6, 2024
Whether or not you believe that big, hairy Sasquatches (Bigfoots) actually exist, this is a fun, spooky, middle-grade read.
Yes, the mix of thriller and humor works in this novel, which features 13-year-old Jay, his four-year-old sister Rose (who is mostly a plot device to slow down the Bigfoot chase and spice up dialogue) and their Sasquatch-fanatic dad (night-vision goggles, headphones and all). The three depart (the two kids reluctantly) on a trip into the woods to find the legendary creature, a common and till now fruitless family diversion.
The dad is ridiculously one-track-minded, leaving Jay to be the sensible one. Of course, things go wrong, something or someone else seems to be in the woods after them, and it all gets spookier from there.
All I can see is this black shape racing through the trees toward us. But it’s big. Really big. The tops of young trees sway against the cloudy night sky as the beach pushes them out of its way. And wow, is the thing smelly.
But it’s spooky-lite, as things also get more ridiculous. (Sasquatch babies play with dolls and can break open cages? Sasquatches can be bribed with bananas? Adult Sasquatches have their own special swear words?)
But anyone willing to suspend a bit of disbelief will get a kick out of the adventure.
It’s all dialogue-heavy, which keeps the pace up and makes for a can’t-put-it-down read. (It is, after all, an “ultra-readable page-turner,” in other words good for reluctant readers.) At times it feels like a book for lower than middle-grade, but I ended up deciding it’s merely a middle-grade tale that allows the reader a guilt-free giggle-fest now and again. And who doesn’t need that?
Fans will even gain a bit of history on the Sasquatch and some knowledge of primate behavior (as well as some amusing fictional behavior). Enjoy the read.
THIS REVIEW ALSO APPEARS AT https://yadudebooks.ca
Yes, the mix of thriller and humor works in this novel, which features 13-year-old Jay, his four-year-old sister Rose (who is mostly a plot device to slow down the Bigfoot chase and spice up dialogue) and their Sasquatch-fanatic dad (night-vision goggles, headphones and all). The three depart (the two kids reluctantly) on a trip into the woods to find the legendary creature, a common and till now fruitless family diversion.
The dad is ridiculously one-track-minded, leaving Jay to be the sensible one. Of course, things go wrong, something or someone else seems to be in the woods after them, and it all gets spookier from there.
All I can see is this black shape racing through the trees toward us. But it’s big. Really big. The tops of young trees sway against the cloudy night sky as the beach pushes them out of its way. And wow, is the thing smelly.
But it’s spooky-lite, as things also get more ridiculous. (Sasquatch babies play with dolls and can break open cages? Sasquatches can be bribed with bananas? Adult Sasquatches have their own special swear words?)
But anyone willing to suspend a bit of disbelief will get a kick out of the adventure.
It’s all dialogue-heavy, which keeps the pace up and makes for a can’t-put-it-down read. (It is, after all, an “ultra-readable page-turner,” in other words good for reluctant readers.) At times it feels like a book for lower than middle-grade, but I ended up deciding it’s merely a middle-grade tale that allows the reader a guilt-free giggle-fest now and again. And who doesn’t need that?
Fans will even gain a bit of history on the Sasquatch and some knowledge of primate behavior (as well as some amusing fictional behavior). Enjoy the read.
THIS REVIEW ALSO APPEARS AT https://yadudebooks.ca
February 4, 2023
What if there was a world where bigfoot was not only real, but that people wanted to be the first to prove that they were real, and bring them in to show them off like animals in a zoo.
Jay’s father loves searching for Big Foot, and is in a club that does just that. It is implied that his mother has left them because she wants nothing to do with this weird obsession.
While on one such camping trip, they do spot Big Foot, and discover that one of the club members has captured the whole family and plans to show them to the world.
And so Jay must help Big Foot, and family, and make sure that they still run free.
It is a cute, quick take on people who are obsessed with things, and where it can lead them. It is also a hi-lo book that means that it is easy for middle schoolers to read, and goes quite quickly.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
Jay’s father loves searching for Big Foot, and is in a club that does just that. It is implied that his mother has left them because she wants nothing to do with this weird obsession.
While on one such camping trip, they do spot Big Foot, and discover that one of the club members has captured the whole family and plans to show them to the world.
And so Jay must help Big Foot, and family, and make sure that they still run free.
It is a cute, quick take on people who are obsessed with things, and where it can lead them. It is also a hi-lo book that means that it is easy for middle schoolers to read, and goes quite quickly.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
August 12, 2023
Read this middle school book because I couldn't decide whether to genre-label it Adventure, Horror or Mystery. It's none, and a little of all, with some age-appropriate Thriller thrown in. Fast-paced and "ultra-readable" story.
April 23, 2023
I’m a sucker for anything Bigfoot.
November 12, 2025
I think this topic will definitely draw my middle schoolers in, and the story is well-written with enough suspense to keep them engaged. I will be ordering a copy for our school library.
November 2, 2023
Challenge: Hallowtween 2023. An action filled story with a satisfying ending. Great for young readers to participate in the preservation of life and freedom for those in the wild as well as learning to make the decisions needed to stand for those we care about.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews