Flush




Alfred A Knopf, 2005, 263 pp., $16.95
By Carl Hiaasen





ISBN#:0-375-821-82-1


Does your dad get angry? Of course he does. Does he sink another man's boat? Not likely. But that's what Noah Underwood's dad does when he thinks a man named Dusty Muleman is dumping his toilets into the ocean. This wasn't the first time Noah's dad let his temper get the better of him and now he's in jail. But instead of just sitting in jail, he asks Noah to finish the job. Noah agrees since he believes his dad is right. However he knows he can't do it by himself so he recruits a motley group of people to help him: a bartender named Shelly, Lice, a man who lives up to his nickname, and who used to work on Dusty Muleman's boat, and Noah's younger sister Abbey, a very tough, ex-childhood biter. Yes, Noah doesn't have much, but he has a plan and he is willing to go down fighting, even though there are nerve-wracking dilemmas such as bullies out for revenge, big mean goons, police and an overprotective mom. All the characters in Flush are hilarious and memorable but my favorite character is Abbey because she is as tough as her brother, but I also liked Noah because of his loyalty to his father.

Flush is a fast, funny read, but it's not all laughs. Carl Hiaasen relates all of his books to environmental crises in Florida and this book doesn't break the trend with its focus on endangered species and polluted water. Fans of Hoot, also by Carl Hiaasen will love this book because it's full of laughs, potty humor, and crazy schemes. I would also recommend Nature Girl and Sick Puppy both by Carl Hiaasen, which also combine outrageous, funny situations and environmentalism.
I would strongly recommend this book to everyone who loves humor and cares about the environment. It's great.