In this follow-up to Heads or Tails (1994), Jack finds plenty of new material for his journal when his family moves to the Caribbean. Populated with some eccentric island folk as well as the powerful personalities that make up Jack's family, the eight stories here convey with sharp humor Jack's uncomfortable yet exhilarating early adolescence. Jack's father creates much of the summer's difficulties, in one story, deciding that each family member must conquer a fear and in another, battling with Jack for masculine power. Laugh-out-loud moments punctuate the book, but serious thoughts also force their way in, as when Jack realizes that the money he is lending to his father's sleazy friend is sponsoring cruel cockfighting. Although the book ends on a somber note, readers will still anxiously await the next installment in Jack's life. Category: Older Readers. 1995, Farrar, $16. Gr. 5-8.