Facing the Beast Within: The Anxiety of Cameron Poole
The Order of the Stones Book 1
by Mark Cheverton
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Pub Date Aug 16 2023 | Archive Date Aug 13 2023
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Description
NEW FROM INTERNATIONALLY PUBLISHED NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR
Mark Cheverton has written 27 books, with over 2 million copies in print.
~ ~ Winner of the Mom's Choice Gold Award~ ~
~ ~ Winner of the International Book Award for Children's Fiction ~ ~
Monsters are invading - demons, gargoyles, and gremlins . . . oh my!
Cameron Poole has a problem, a big problem: he's a bully magnet who struggles with anxiety. Being the smallest sixth-grader at his summer camp, everything around him triggers his everyday struggles with anxiety, or with his Beast, making it impossible for him to do the same things other kids can do. In a constant state of worry, Cameron feels like a perpetual failure, his self esteem crushed. That's bad enough, but when Cameron learns that mythical monsters are trying to invade his camp, things go from bad to worse.
Malphas, the Demon Lord from a parallel world called Agartha, wants to bring mythical creatures from his world to form a monster army, attack Camp Pontchartrain, and begin his invasion. But before he can bring the biggest and most ferocious monsters to Earth, he must find the seven Skull Keys that will keep the gateway between worlds open forever.
Against all logic, Cameron is chosen to lead an unusual collection of kids to stop Malphas from finding the Skull Keys. But the Demon Lord of Agartha has other plans. He sends mythical creatures to Earth, gremlins, imps, gargoyles . . . to find the keys and destroy anyone in their way.
To stop the Malphas and his monster army from getting all the Skull Keys, Cameron must face his deepest fears while trying to keep his friends safe. But when he learns Malphas's real plan, Cameron's blood runs cold with fear.
Can Cameron control his anxiety and confront his Beast while battling an army of minotaurs, banshees, ghouls, golems, and other nightmarish monsters?
Buckle up and get ready for a thrilling adventure!
~ ~ ~
While writing this novel, Cheverton worked with a large team of psychologists, social workers, and licensed mental health counselors to learn about the many symptoms of anxiety as well as how these professionals teach their patients coping strategies to help them stand up against their own Beasts. These learnings, coupled with Cheverton's own experiences with his son's anxiety, were woven throughout the story and form a teaching tool for parents and therapists while at the same time offering kids a spine-tingling adventure that will keep them turning the page.
Hopefully, kids with anxiety will find a kindred spirit in Cameron Poole and feel that they're not alone in their personal storm of fear and doubt. Parents will gain a little understanding as to what their children are going through, and hopefully, people without anxiety will gain a little insight and compassion toward those suffering from this terrible affliction.
Advance Praise
"Cheverton’s middle-grade fantasy series starter shares a timely tale of childhood anxiety about a young camper assisting in a battle to save Earth … A compelling fantasy adventure with intriguing self-help elements.
– KIRKUS REVIEWS
Facing the Beast Within is a fantastic, emotive, and multi-layered adventure that will satisfy young readers everywhere. I can’t wait to see more from this enthralling and socially conscious series.
– K.C. FINN
Readers’ Favorite – 5-star review
This is an awesome book!! Cameron is down to earth and relatable—a kid with lots of worries, just like me. Facing the Beast Within is a great read for anyone dealing with anxiety and the people who love them too.
– ANIA, AGE 12,
Kids’ Book Buzz
Kids in my practice have flocked to Mark Cheverton’s books for years! This book really helps kids struggling with anxiety to feel understood and empowered.
– DR. JENNIFER SMITKEN
Psychologists/Clinical Director"
Available Editions
| ISBN | 9781735878171 |
| PRICE | $0.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 262 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Farah G, Reviewer
At a time when mental health issues have become a veritable epidemic among both adults and children - partly as a result of stress and our modern lifestyles, and worsened further by the pandemic - this book provides a useful resource to assist parents whose children are experiencing problems with anxiety, self esteem, bullying and other such issues.
Cameron Poole is having a difficult time at Camp Pontchartrain. As the smallest boy within his age group, he is a frequent target for bullies. And with each experience, his anxiety about the possibility of further such incidents increases, creating a vicious circle. All this considerably worsens Cameron's existing tendency towards catastrophising.
And things are about to get a lot worse as the kids at the camp become embroiled in the Demon Lord Malphas's plan to bring his Monster Army over from another dimension to invade our world. If Cameron can't cope with ziplines and rope-ladders, how on earth is he going to deal with mythical monsters like the gargoyles and gremlins that Malphas is unleashing?
But sometimes, we can do things together that we would struggle to do alone. And as the children of Camp Pontchartrain develop some unlikely alliances among themselves to combat the common threats that they face, Cameron finds hidden resources within himself that unexpectedly come to the surface...
The author has made it clear that he wrote this book as part of coming to terms with his son's journey with anxiety, and the effort and intelligence that he has put into his storytelling is evident.
The story is fast-paced enough to hold the attention of youngsters whilst weaving in a variety of strategies to help address The Beast that children like Cameron struggle with - namely, deep-rooted and debilitating anxiety.
Many children are likely to find Cameron's issues highly relatable, and will benefit from being able to access a story like this. It might also help them to deal better with peers who have not previously understood what kids like Cameron have to get to grips with on a daily basis. A commendable effort and worth a read.
Kathryn M, Reviewer
This was a great start to the Order of the Stones series, it had a great concept for a middle grade novel. It had a strong concept overall and did a great job in creating a good adventure novel. The characters were everything that I was hoping for and were written perfectly.
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