skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Orphans with potential will still be lost in the system. Their potential turns from something good to something that could lead them down a path of crime. When one man develops a network to funnel those delinquent orphans through the system directly to his island, he changes the fate of these children forever. John Dixon's Phoenix Island is a no-nonsense story about who we are inside... and who we are fated to be.
Carl Freeman lost his parents and became an orphan. Stability is a figment of his imagination as he is bounced from foster family to foster family and state to state. He tries to stay out of trouble and keep to himself, but he has a weakness for bullies. When he sees a bunch of kids going too far, he can't help but step in and do something. Of course the bullies were the sons of very connected people, so boxing champ Carl is deemed the villain in that story. When the judge sends him to Phoenix Island, Carl chooses to see this as an opportunity rather than a punishment. If he keeps his head down and does his time, he will be released with an expunged record by the time he is 18. This is the first big break Carl has ever received and he intends to take it seriously.
Phoenix Island is nothing like he expected. Sure, there are other delinquents like himself, but the guards are not interested in just making sure everyone follows the rules. They are soldiers. And sadistic. In addition, they have picked some favorites out of the group to act as their long reaching arms into the ranks of the orphans. The boys chosen for that detail are exactly like the kids Carl beat up to get put here. It will be hard enough to keep his head down, but when Carl starts to suspect there is something deeper and darker than just vindictive guards, he struggles with his inner conscience. His weakness has always been that he cared about the people around him. At least that is what the system led him to believe. But in reality? Has it made him stronger than the bullies around him?
Phoenix Island looked like a "boy book" and truly turned out to be a boy book. If it was a movie, a 16 yr old Sylvester Stallone would play Carl. He would wear a dirty white tank top and fatigues and run around the island all sweaty and dirty. I am not criticizing this. Honestly? I watch the Rambo series all the time (more than I care to admit). But there is a particular audience for this kind of story. If you have a reader who loves those violent action flicks (I know I do!) with explosions and bad guys and the lone good guy trying to save the world one innocent life at a time, here be your tale. And it was done pretty well, albeit a little formulaic. I really didn't have to predict much about the layout of the plot because it happened just as you would think it would. Again, that isn't to say I didn't like it, because it was certainly enjoyable, but I would have loved a surprise every now and then.
The real winner in this story is Carl. He is truly unwavering in his goodness. Carl actually cannot control himself when it comes to protecting the innocent, even when he knows it will totally and completely ruin his life. He is the epitome of unwavering good guy. A little unrealistic, but it makes for an entertaining story! He is the kind of good guy you can't help but root for and hope he pummels the crap out of the bad guys. I have to say, the fact that he is always in trouble for stopping bullying is my favorite part of the story (and the saddest reflection of humanity). Phoenix Island is an entertaining, kind of predictable story that will certainly appeal to those hard-to-reach boys.
It's bad enough to be labeled a juvenile delinquent over an accident and sent to a wilderness program with other criminals, but watching everyone around you turn into flesh eating zombies just makes it that much worse. In Sean Beaudoin's Infects, Nero is trapped in his own worst nightmare... but at least there is a cute girl there too!
Nick Soul couldn't have imagined a freak accident on the chicken "disassembly" line would have him labeled an ecoterrorist or a criminal, but then again there isn't much in his life that goes his way. As he is on his way to the wilderness program that is supposed to "straighten him out", he realizes there are worse things in this world than the genocide of chickens that happens everyday in the chicken factory. Once he chooses his wilderness name, Nero, he is immersed into a ride that no one world have expected.
Not 24 hours in the woods and Nero wakes up to a sight he can't believe is real despite looking at it with his own two eyes: one of his counselors is bent over the other counselor... eating him. It is that very moment that all hell breaks loose. The few other delinquents who aren't crazy cannibals take off with Nero headed away from the campsite- they don't know where they plan to go, but they know they can't stay there! On the way, the boys encounter all manner of zombies, but what is even scarier than their desire for human flesh is the fact that they seem able to think, reason, and solve problems. Those are never good qualities to find in a zombie. You never want a zombie to be smart enough to find even more ways to eat you. If life wasn't hell for Nick before he became Nero, its about to be worse than any hell he could imagine.
Well, I think it is important to know that this zombie novel isn't really your classic zombie novel. It is more like "Shawn of the Dead" in novel form, a farce, a spoof, if you will. I thought it was a real zombie novel, so when I delved in and started to notice some quirks and odd characters, I became suspicious. By the end it was clear this was a goofy book playing off the subgenre. That isn't to say it isn't funny, because it is, but if you were looking for a real zombie novel, try Jonathan Maberry's Rot and Ruin series.
That being said, this was a pretty entertaining, albeit goofy, book. The descriptions and dialogue will leave you chuckling, and even the zombies themselves are ridiculous (even with gory bits of human gristle hanging out of their mouths). Even though the story is funny, it is also pretty bloody. I would suggest this book for those students who like a good horror movie but have a sarcastic streak. Those are the kids who will appreciate this story the most. While it wasn't my favorite book, this story gave me a few chuckles and definitely has a niche audience. I can see myself passing it off to my older students (some pretty vulgar language on top of gore and sexual content). But, it would definitely have to be the exactly perfect audience for this story to work for one of my students.
