Although the latest novel from Gordon Korman sports a less-than-stellar cover illustration, the story is up to Korman’s usual standards and his many fans will not be disappointed. The Chicken Doesn’t Skate is aimed squarely at the 9 to 12 age group, which is the audience with whom Korman has had his greatest success.

Milo, a brainy nerd, brings in a baby chicken for his science project on the food chain. The chick, which is named Henrietta (over Milo’s strenuous objections), turns out to be a powerful good luck charm for the school hockey team. To Milo’s consternation the entire school quickly falls in love with his fluffy specimen. When the chick-crazed student body discovers that Henrietta’s place in the food chain is going to be demonstrated by having her killed and served to the science fair judges, the trouble really begins.

The main characters in this story take turns narrating the action from their own individual perspectives. Using a variety of narrators can add to the depth of characterization, as it did, for example, in Kevin Major’s Far From Shore. Here, however, the device does little to help flesh out Korman’s one-dimensional characters. Nevertheless, the most important test of a humorous novel is whether it is funny, and Korman, as few other writers can, creates stories full of hilarious situations and incidents. He has a marvellous ability to manipulate a large number of characters and several intertwining plot lines in a way that provides a steady stream of laughs even as it builds to hilarious climaxes. The Chicken Doesn’t Skate is sure to be a hit.