THE MYSTERY OF A NUBBINS

Wiist’s middle-grade novel follows two brothers whose summer of ’83 entails run-ins with extraordinarily bizarre kids in the woods.

Peter and his younger brother, Andrew, trek through the forest near their family home. They plan to build forts (one apiece) until their construction is interrupted by someone shooting rubber bullets at them. They soon encounter a boy, who, despite packing a loaded “toy gun,” is playful. He’s peculiar, as well—evasive when asked his name and frighteningly nimble when hopping between trees. Peter and Andrew continue to return to the woods as the summer rolls on, and the boy even works on Peter’s cabin-like fort when the brothers are away. Peter meets a girl who’s just as mysterious as the boy. The boy claims he has a rare comic book for trade, but is this a sign that the two figures from the forest are somehow trying to rope Peter and Andrew into something nefarious? And will learning who or what the boy and girl truly are help the brothers keep themselves safe? The ambiguity in Wiist’s story rarely wavers. In several instances, the boy and girl appear to be typical adolescents, as evidenced by the boy’s affinity for comic books. But there’s so much mystery surrounding them (they easily speed through labyrinthine sections of the woods) that they come across as eerie. At the same time, the brothers’ relationship is endearing in its believability. Andrew, for example, may annoy Peter with his socially awkward inability to lie or keep his mouth shut, but there’s no doubt that the siblings have each other’s backs. They propel a story that effectively reflects the era, with nods to specific movies and TV shows (and kids wielding spud guns). Wiist also supplies the book’s colorful full-page artwork, which sublimely depicts such images as a bird’s-eye-view of Peter’s cliffside fort-in-progress and Andrew aiming his trusty slingshot.

A heartwarming brother dynamic blends well with a hint of the supernatural.