Dust, Decay, and Devotion

In the world after an apocalypse, life will revert back centuries. A day will revolve around the sun, work will be for survival, and modern medicine, like vaccines, will be a forgotten luxury. In Mindy McGinnis's sequel to Not a Drop to Drink, she takes the apocalypse one step further in the fight for survival. In a Handful of Dust doesn't stop at simple survival, like finding food and water. It takes these characters through something far scarier. 

Lynn used to shoot anyone who dared to walk near her pond, the only healthy water source nearby, and a guarantee for survival, at least in a world where water is difficult to come by. Now she has a whole civilization around her pond and even adopted Lucy, a girl whose family was lost to the apocalypse in the worst kinds of ways. They have a fairly decent life, given the circumstances, until people start to get sick. When a polio outbreak threatens the community, and Lucy is targeted as a possible carrier, Lynn has no choice but to go with the young girl when the community insists she leave to protect them from the illness. 

With no real knowledge of the world outside her property, but still a stubborn determination to survive, Lynn decides to head to California to see if there is a place unspoiled by the water shortage. As they pick their way across the country, they encounter all manner of people. Some mean well but are clearly suffering and struggling to survive. Others are capitalizing on the circumstances and thriving in the wake of such devastation. Regardless of the obstacle in their path, Lynn refuses to give up. She and Lucy will get to California, even if it kills them. And it just might.

I really loved the first book in this series, and this second book was just as great of a read with the exception of one huge, glaring flaw- its entire premise. Lynn isn't just a stubborn survivor. She is a smart, logical woman who understands how to survive and how to weigh the pros and cons of every decision. We saw her be ruthless when she needed to, and we saw her compromise when it was the best decision. But one thing was for sure. Lynn did not take kindly to the unknown and her home was her home. So why on earth would it be so easy to displace her from her own darned property?! I understand McGinnis wanted the story to be about the journey, but the part where Lucy and Lynn are pushed out is so rushed, it doesn't do justice to Lynn's character. There is no way Lynn would leave her own property and her pond without any kind of a fight, but that was exactly what she did. It felt too much like a quick plot device than an actual development in the character, especially when you see how she is on the road- same old Lynn. Logical, sometimes ruthless survivor. 

That annoying flaw in the story aside, this was a very interesting book. The characters they met on the road were realistic and interesting. They were varied and different, and some were downright terrifying. I also loved the differences between Lucy and Lynn. When Lynn can be cold and pragmatic at times, Lucy is kind and trusting. The dichotomy between the two was the perfect duo to cross the country in such dire times, giving the reader two different perspectives on the world. It was a good sequel, albeit not a perfect sequel, and it would still leave me interested in whatever McGinnis chooses to write about next!

It is the End... Or Is It?

Some things are never as they seem, and After the End, by Amy Plum is no exception. A story within a story that leads to another story, this is one post-apocalyptic tale you haven't heard before... because nothing is as it seems. 

Juneau was raised to be the next Sage for her community. Using the earth and its energy, the Sage can communicate in a way completely foreign to the humans of the past. Then again, much of the post-apocalyptic landscape after devastating World War III would be foreign to the humans of the past. Juneau's parents, among others, escaped the war-torn wasteland to hide and survive in an isolated area of Alaska. They live off the land and with the land. But when Juneau's entire community disappears while she is on a hunt, along with the sighting of a helicopter- a piece of technology that should be long gone with another way of life, she knows she must find them. 

Meanwhile, there are a lot of people looking for Juneau. When she makes her way back into the United States, she doesn't find what she expected. Life is carrying on normally. In fact, it appears there never was a war. Determined to find her parents, cynical, skeptical Juneau picks her way through the country looking for her people. When she comes across Miles, she has no use for the disrespectful boy, but he has a reason to go along with her- he wants to help capture her and curry his father's favor. While Juneau doesn't trust him, she also isn't aware of the depth of his deceit. The only thing she cares about are her people. 

I was totally surprised by this book! I expected your typical post-apocalyptic story (clearly didn't read the description too carefully before starting it) and I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and differences of the story. I even really liked Juneau- a girl completely out of her element in the modern world after growing up surviving in the Alaskan wilderness. It was refreshing and even comical at times to see her trying to make her way with so little knowledge of survival in a world of technology.

My one confusion was Miles. There are these moments when Juneau really feels drawn to him, and I just don't get. Usually I like the wise-guy with a heart of gold character, but Miles didn't have that redemption for me. Instead he seemed like a pompous, self-serving little twit most of the time and his few moments of unboorishness were so few and far between they left me undeterred in my original opinion of him. Overall, I liked this story and there were a lot of unanswered questions that I look forward to exploring in the sequel. I just hope Miles stops being such a darned twerp!

The Cycle of Life

The responsibility of being the last man on earth must be a burden like no other; for Yorick, it appears to be just another day, as long as you don't consider the fact that he is being hunted by multiple groups of women for very different reasons. In the second volume of Y: The Last Man, Cycles, Brian K. Vaughan flexes his muscles in the story of Yorick, the last remaining man on earth. 

Yorick and Agent 355 found Dr. Mann, the woman looking to cure the plague, but they didn't save her research. When her lab and all her research is burned, they decide to head across the country to her secondary lab in California. Unfortunately, there is a whole country full of women who would be very interested to learn about the last man on earth between them and California. They are able to bargain their way onto a train headed West, but they should have expected the trip couldn't be that easy. When they end up in a small, idyllic town, they can't believe how well these women are living. What they don't know is that the whole town is hiding a very big secret. 

This volume does a great job of giving you glimpses into Yorick, Dr. Mann, and Agent 355, and because of that, you become heavily invested in the story after these issues. The first book was fun and exciting, but this is where you get hooked. The story line is complex and there are characters who will blow you mind. The reintroduction of Yorick's sister Hero is the most pivotal point for me. I just can't wrap my head around her and everything she is doing. And yet, why not? The world as they knew it is over. Why not capitalize on the new face of the planet? 

One of the most interesting sides of this part of the story is how different groups of women cope with the death of all the men. Some are falling apart, but some are actually better off, and that is a hard thing to wrap your head around! I loved how much it made me think and process that fact. Of course we would all grieve the loss of our husbands, fathers, sons, and friends, but who would survive best? And how would the world change without them? It is a heady batch of questions, but you will keep asking yourself these and many more as you continue with this fabulous series!

It All Happens in the End

Everyone knows the zombie craze has hit big time, and with the success of The Walking Dead, it isn't going anywhere. So how do you make a story with maniacal, people eating creatures new and fresh? If you are Demitria Lunetta, you make them greenish-yellow with creepy fangs... but their origins aren't so different. In the End is the conclusion of Amy's tale in a world where arrogance and experimentation led to a completely new species of people, who are contagious and who want to eat you. 

Amy and Baby survived together in silence, avoiding the Florae wherever possible. They thought New Hope, and the realization that Amy's mother was still alive, would allow them to live in peace finally, but it was clear the crazy scientists in the compound had different ideas. Amy escaped, but she left Baby behind in what she thought was relative safety. Unfortunately, when Kay, a guardian who helped save Amy, contacts her, Kay tells Amy that Baby is now being bled dry for Dr. Reynolds' experiments. Amy can't save her alone, so Kay sends Amy to Fort Black where her brother Ken is working on a cure. She thinks Ken can request to work directly with Baby and get her out of New Hope, but from the moment Amy enters Fort Black, it is clear nothing is going to go as planned. 

Fort Black is basically a lawless prison that is only preferable over becoming Florae food. The guards who are protected by the Warden are fed well and everyone else must use whatever methods possible to feed themselves. Luckily, Amy stumbles across Jacks, the Warden's nephew who, while protected and living a life of leisure thanks to the Warden's influence, is still a pretty good guy. Amy explains why she is looking for Ken, and Jacks agrees to help her, but to protect her, he must also "claim" her. Unclaimed ladies are unprotected ladies, so, despite Amy's protests at being thought of as property, she allows the rumor to spread that she is now Jacks' girl. The problem, though, is no one has ever heard of or seen Ken. Just when Amy starts to think she will never find him or save Baby, she realizes the truth depths of the darkness in Fort Black. And it's ugly. 

The only think I can complain about with this book is that I am pretty sure this is it for the series. I thought there was going to be a trilogy, but the sequel ended with quite a bit of finality. I am sad to see it go, because this was a really great series! The story is fast-paced and exciting, every character is dynamic and interesting, and there really were no complaints I had about anything! Even the new and supporting characters like Brenna and Jacks were fabulous! I hope someone can convince Lunetta to do a book that comes later, because I don't want to be done with Amy and the group!

The story behind the Florae is just downright disturbing. Almost all of it came out in the end of the first book, but you get a really full back story with this sequel. In addition, the series of experiments to find a cure is downright unethical, but in a post-apocalyptic world, where people will eat you, is there room for ethics? I found myself asking that a lot throughout this book. I am currently reading Watchmen with my juniors, and we talk a lot about the ethicality of sacrificing a few to save the money. Still, it is hard to imagine how anyone could dehumanize their subjects enough to inject a child with the Florae virus! I found the moral questions in this story were just as strong as the entertainment factor of this crazy story. And somehow, Lunetta figured out a way to make new, scarier versions of zombies! Holy Florae, Batman!

Sunrise in a Darkened World

Alex and Darla are survivors in every way possible, but in a world that is dangerous in every way possible, it is hard to maintain hope of one day returning to living, not surviving. In Mike Mullin's Ashfall series finale, Sunrise, he brings the incredible story home in a way that couldn't be more perfect. 

After setting off to find his parents, losing Darla to flensers (cannibals), being a prisoner in a FEMA camp, finding his parents, finding Darla, and losing his father in the battle to save her, Alex knows all to well how ugly this world can be. He has returned to his uncle's farm outside Warren with his damaged mother, Darla, and a few others in tow. What he returns to is just as grim as his travels. The neighboring town, Stockton, is being run by a ruthless maniac named Red. Red might be insane, but he smart. That level of intelligence combined with such insanity is a dangerous combination. When Stockton takes all Warren's food stock including enough pork to last the town for the foreseeable future, Alex knows he must get it back. Unfortunately, the mayor of Warren is more concerned with his own ego than a smart strategy, and he leads his people into an ambush. When Alex takes charge and manages to recover most of the pork, he has not only made an enemy in Red, but also in the mayor. 

Alex understands his uncle's farm is too isolated, unprotected, and dangerous, but so is Warren. He tries to convince the town to protect itself, but he meets nothing but opposition. While he wants to protect everyone he can, he realizes he isn't going to risk his own life or the lives of those he loves trying to reason with people who don't want to listen. Alex is determined to find a way to increase his food production, create a surplus even, and find a way where they can survive without having to fear for their lives each and every day. What he doesn't expect is that in this new world, it doesn't matter how old you are. People look up to you, respect you, and put their lives in your hands if they believe in you. And it is hard not to believe in a young man like Alex.

When I first read Ashfall, I was blown away. Knocked on my literary behind! This story was absolutely phenomenal; in a genre full of stories just like it, it was a shining star. Ashen Winter was just as striking. And now Sunrise has left me devastated. It's over! Sunrise was such an impossibly perfect ending to this series that I am sobbing in my cocoa about the fact that we will never have another Ashfall story again! It is like Mullin knew exactly what I wanted from this story and delivered it like a true master. I mean, I knew this man was a heavyweight in the genre, but he just elevated himself to a class unto his own with this finale!

The progression of the story through the three books starts with Ashfall as the catastrophe novel. Then Ashen Winter is the survivor's novel. And finally, Sunrise is the novel of hope, healing, and moving on. That isn't to say there isn't a graphic and violent portrayal of life in this post-apocalyptic world, because this book is just as shocking and horrific as the first two, but it has a different message. This book brings the series full circle into a place where you wanted and needed it to go. It also allows the children of this new world to grow into their shoes the way they were meant to. Alex was just a bratty kid when the volcano blew. By the end, he is a man to be proud to stand beside. It was an amazing transition, and I feel honored to have witnessed it in this character, among others. But alongside Alex and Darla and the others you come to love and hold your breath when they find themselves in precarious situations, you are also confronted with the absolute worst examples of society. It is disturbing to see people act like these do, but you know as well as I do that they would be there, most likely profiting, in a post-apocalyptic world. 

Mullin's prowess as a storyteller, however, is that despite the dark and ugly side of humanity, you still find hope and humanity around every corner. Sure people are skeptical, but they can still turn out to be good people, great even, when given the opportunity. As dark as this series can get, there is always that restored faith in humanity that brings you back for more. When I got my hands on this book, I was so excited I abandoned a book I was 2/3 finished with. This series has made such an impact on me that I refused to wait even a day before starting it. I waited long enough between the last book and this one, that I couldn't wait another minute! So, thank you, Mr. Mullin. You brought to our shelves a story that is sure to cause irreparable damage because nothing will ever be able to live up to its greatness! 

Water, Water Everywhere and Not a Drop to Drink

If there were a water shortage, the people living in cities with no real water sources of their own would be desperate. In Lynn's world, water has always been scarce to the point that those who have it, guard it with their lives. In Not a Drop to Drink, Mindy McGinnis isn't afraid to show just how dark and cruel the world can be. 

Lynn and Mother live and survive by themselves. They don't need anyone else. They protect their little pond, gather and store food and wood to get them through the winter, and they shoot anyone who comes close to their water. They have to. In this world, its killed or be killed, and Mother doesn't let anyone get close enough to tip the scales in their favor. When an unfortunate accident leaves Lynn all by herself, she knows she can survive, but she isn't sure she is willing to survive the way her mother always taught her to. When her neighbor, Stebbs, makes contact, Lynn breaks every rule her mother set. She talks to him. Even worse, she agrees to check out the camp of strangers down stream who clearly have no idea what they are doing. 

Lynn has never had to deal with people, so she doesn't come off as terribly empathetic when she meets Eli. He and his niece Lucy and Lucy's very pregnant mother Neva have been camping and trying to survive, but with the group of dangerous men nearby who took all their food and Neva's refusal to leave the side of the stream, life hasn't been easy. Now Neva is in labor and in trouble. Normally Lynn would have left them to fend for themselves, but Stebbs convinces her that the world isn't always so black and white. When people have more than they need and have the ability to help those who don't, their choices say a lot about them. And so begins Lynn's new life- one where she has to trust people more than she ever has. 

This was a seriously realistic, interesting post-apocalyptic story that, in my humble opinion, accurately depicts the world we would live in if water became more valuable than money. The descriptions of life in the cities where people are forced to live in poverty, desperately trying to make enough to buy water and the life in the wilds where people with water sources hold onto them fiercely. The descriptions of Lynn and her mother were truly remarkable. A woman with a daughter, surviving all those years alone, they had to become a hardened to the plights of those around them, and McGinnis did a beautiful job of explaining that. I loved that while Lynn grew up being suspicious of everyone and shooting before asking questions, she still had it in her to care about people, like her love for little Lucy. Even giving Stebbs a chance was a huge step for Lynn, and while each step took courage, she was willing to brave new territory.

This is a great book for anyone new to the PA genre or someone who already delved into it. It is a very realistic portrait of life after the end of the world as we knew it. The violence is certainly there, as it has to be for this kind of landscape, but it isn't gratuitous. The story is relatively short, about 300 pages, but it is a full and complete story from start to finish with an ending that couldn't be more perfect. The characters certainly suffer some losses, and you see how truly ugly people can be in a world like this, but you will be happy with the course of events that has to take place. I really loved this book, and I will be keeping an eye on McGinnis from now on!

The UnWholly Unwind

The Akron AWOL is infamous. The other whollies worship him and the Unwind Culture despises everything he stands for. But behind the moniker is Connor. Connor is just a boy who made it to 17 and can't be unwound, but the weight of the world rests on his shoulders in Unwholly, the second Unwind book by Neal Shusterman.

Connor is in charge of the entire plane Graveyard. He has hidden over 800 AWOLs there, but the fact that missing kids slated for unwinding are hiding there is no secret. He isn't sure why the authorities haven't come to get them yet, but he takes each and every day as a gift. While he and Risa can't be unwound anymore, there are a lot of kids whose lives are in his hands. He can barely feed the kids he has, but that doesn't stop them from the constant rescue missions to save more. Of course, not every kid is as grateful as they should be, and some, like Starkey, have only their interests in mind. When a bunch of kids are barely holding it together in the face of imminent unwinding, all it takes is one very smart, very devious rabble rouser.

Meanwhile, Camus Comprix tries to find his way in a world where he shouldn't exist. The product of dozens of unwound kids, he is made of the parts of others. He was created, not born. When he struggles to find his way in the world with so many conflicting thoughts and memories swirling around his head, his handler feels a companion will keep him on the right track as the most revolutionary advance for humans in their existence. The only problem is the girl Cam wants is an unwilling participant in the experiment. When Risa is captured and blackmailed into joining Cam, she is forced to support the Unwinding movement, the single thing she hates the most. While everyone at the Graveyard thinks she has betrayed them, Risa is trying everything to hold them together. For a group of kids who no one cares if they exist or not, the responsibility sitting on their shoulders is overwhelming.

This was such an interesting follow up to Unwind for a number of reasons. First, it was a book that came out after a significant hiatus. Shusterman took a while to get this book together, so if you followed the series from its inception, you needed a refresher at the beginning of this sequel before you started the new story. But who wants to read an info dump or a recap? So Shusterman created a really ingenious "index" that catches you up quickly and efficiently at the beginning of the story so you know where you are without some silly recap. I also really liked how he balanced the story between the main characters from the last book, Lev, Connor, and Risa, and the new characters Starkey, Cam and Miracolina. The addition of the focus on new characters made it more interesting while still keeping me connected to the previous book.

On a whole, this is one of the creepiest premises I have ever read. I mean, seriously, unwinding kids?? People fighting to preserve the unwinding? The public service notices to convince people what a wonderful solution to abortion? CRAZY! But a brilliant fictional examination of just how far people can go and how blinded they can be in the face of fear and propaganda. It is the kind of series that can be related to everything from the Holocaust to the battle over same sex marriage or abortion. I love a book that is going to elicit passionate discussions from my students, and unwinding is definitely one that will get them fired up. But in addition to the infinite discussions, you will get wrapped up in a really crazy, really interesting story. Shusterman always does that to me!

The Moon's Control

Susan Beth Pfeffer is a giant among authors. Her name might not be as well -known as J.K. Rowling, but she has such a powerful and versatile writing style that her books will stay with you long after you have finished them. When the third Life as We Know it series ended, I thought the series had ended with it. But here, years later both in the publishing world and in the setting of the story, we are lucky enough to find a fourth book in the series called The Shade of the Moon. 

Jon was always the little kid. He was the kid who had to be taken care of and kept safe. That was how he came to be a claver. Only people with passes were able to "slip" into the Enclaves, and Lisa, Jon's stepmother, had three passes. One for her, one for her son (Jon's half brother) and one for Jon. It was decided. The rest of his family wanted him to live in the Enclave and have as close to a normal life as possible with the state of the world as it has been. Years ago a meteor hit the moon, and since then, the world has been subject to severe shifts in weather patterns, geological disasters like earthquakes and volcanos where they shouldn't be, and mass extinctions caused by a host of catalysts. When the blended family couldn't survive any longer in Pennsylvania, they traveled to the Enclave, hoping for something better but not knowing what to expect. 

Now Jon is a claver and his mother, sister, brother, and their families all live outside the clave. Everyone outside the clave is known as a grub. If you weren't fortunate enough to be a claver, your life as a grub was determined by the people of the clave. If they needed a domestic, it didn't matter if you had a PhD, you were a grub who would work where they told you. If you defied the Enclave, you were sent to the mines where no one lasted very long. Life in and outside the clave wasn't ideal, but at least it was life. That was more than most people in the world had. Jon has grown into a virtual adult as a claver, and even though he has family outside the wall, he still carries the entitlement that comes with being a member of the clave, even though those who aren't "slips" (slipped inside with a pass), don't let him forget that he is only one step above a grub. Slowly, however, it becomes clear to Jon that there are some ugly and even scandalous things happening in the clave. When a soccer match turns ugly between the clave and the grubtown, everyone sees just how lopsided the power truly is, and the results get deadly. 

I was so ecstatic when I realized Pfeffer was writing another of the Moon books. Beside myself, even. I loved the original series that consisted of the first book about Jon and Miranda's family, the second about Alex (who became Miranda's husband) and his family, and the third brought everyone together. With this new book we really had an opportunity to see them outside survival mode and really trying to live their lives, which was much easier for the clavers who lived in relative comfort with an endless supply of domestic servants than it was outside the clave in White Birch with the grubs who were their domestics. This clash and clear caste system was so intriguing that it brought the series to a whole new level. I loved the turn it took the series, and that the story centered around Jon, who we didn't see much of int he other stories. While Jon should be happy as a claver, he is haunted by his life before he reached the Enclave as well as living a life where everyone he knows relishes in reminding him that he is no more than an unwanted guest inside the community. Even his family in White Birch are shocked by his lack of empathy for the grubs like themselves, but it is Jon's transformation that really makes this story brilliant. He becomes the man everyone hoped he would, even though it took him a while to find that man. 

This is a series that is not only great for young adults, but it is clean enough to be suitable for stronger middle readers. Some of the content is mature, so choose your reader wisely, but the story itself is clean and accessible enough for some middle readers. The characters are the heart of the story, and it is amazing to see all your familiar faces back again, but in a new capacity. Alex and Miranda are now supporting characters, which keeps the story from burning out or dragging on for too long. And Jon is a complex character, full of demons and haunted by his past, which makes him even more spectacular of a redemption. I really loved this whole series, but this story in particular. I am keeping my fingers crossed that in a few years, Pfeffer will announce a fifth book and will keep me in the Moon world. It might not be the best world to live in, but it is full of family, and love and hope, despite all the obstacles standing in the way. 

The Day it All Ended

The experts say we are ready for a pandemic of epic proportions, but we have never really understood what that means in terms of the collapse of society and survival. How many of us could really live through the apocalypse? In Amber Kizer's A Matter of Days, two brave kids set out to travel across the country in the wake of the most devastating pandemic the world has ever seen.

Nadia and Rabbit weren't raised like other kids. With their uncle and father teaching them survival tips all their life, their crazy, off-the-grid grandfather, and their nurse mother, they have picked up a few tricks over the years. When their Uncle Bean comes to Seattle and gives them injections, they know something is about to happen. A scientist from the most secret of government labs, Bean knew BluStar was going to decimate the population. He also knew the vaccine to stop it. He left them with an injection for their mother and instructions of what to do should the pandemic begin, and the rest would have to be up to them.

After BluStar took down the world, Nadia and Rabbit followed Beans instructions. It wasn't enough to save their mother, but they managed to make it through the virus, the mass exodus, and the mass extinction. Now that the virus has run its course, they must continue as the direction tell them, to make their way from Seattle to the wilds of West Virginia where their grandfather has been building a place to survive anything in the heart of an old mine. It all sounds so simple, but with society all but gone, gangs of marauders, and people who have totally lost their minds following the end of the world as they know it, making it across the entire country seems almost impossible. Still, Nadia and Rabbit know what they must do and where they must go, and nothing can stop them. Even the supreme kindness of strangers.

I love apocalypse stories. Love them. The Stand is one of my all time favorites, and this book reminded me of the YA version of The Stand or Earth Abides (without Stephen King's mysticism, of course). The idea of being left alone int he world with so little of the population surviving is terrifying, but I can't get enough of it! So this story had a lot to live up to (and I was pleasantly surprised to read the fabulous author's note at the end of the book and learn Kizer was a huge fan of The Stand as a kid!). And A Matter of Days held its own next to those giants! It was, of course, a YA version- less ugly, gruesome, and gritty. But it was still a great story of a brother and sister left to fend for themselves. It wasn't as gritty as Mike Mullin's Ashfall, but it was still a fabulous story!

I also loved that we FINALLY have a couple of characters in an apocalypse story who know what they are talking about (and Rabbit names their found dog TEOTWAWKI, TWAWKI for short- "The End of the World As We Know It"!!). These kids didn't know everything  about survival, but Bean had left them with fabulous instructions and with books for survival. With everything their Special Ops father had taught them before he was killed in action, they had enough to make it as far as they did. I loved the fact that these kids were the product of standard preppers (not the type who get a little carried away with it). It was a fabulous twist, and one I have been waiting for throughout years of reading this genre! I mean, really, do you think there would be a zombie apocalypse in 2013 and not one single person who survived would have watched or read The Walking Dead?? So silly! A few people who know what to do are going to certainly survive, but so are some who want to prey on those unwilling or unprepared to defend themselves. And then there will be some purely decent people, and I am really glad this book had a little bit of everything- it made it a tame but realistic PA novel that I really enjoyed!

I actually read this book in one complete sitting (barring water and bathroom breaks). It was so well paced and so interesting I couldn't bring myself to put it down. I really related to all the main characters, even though they were so different from one another. Because this is a fairly tame PA story, it would be great for most junior high through high school students. The writing is fairly simple and the style is straightforward. I think this would be a fun book for a variety of readers, including those adults who love PA! So, Ms. Kizer, please give us more like this! I loved it!

After Doesn't Always Have Good Beginnings

What would you be doing when the world as you knew it came to an end? Most likely something simple, mundane, or every day. In Demitria Lunetta's phenomenal breakout novel, In the After, the world crashes to a halt. And everything outside wants to eat you.

Amy was watching TV and eating bagel pizzas when it happened. She was annoyed when the show she was watching was interrupted by a Presidential address, but then she realized something was seriously wrong. Luckily, her prepper mother and her greenie father created the perfect fortress around their suburban Chicago home. Complete with an electric fence powered by her father's solar panels, Amy is able to survive without Them finding a way in. Outside is a different story. With the aliens roaming the entire country just waiting for their next meal to tear apart with their claws and teeth, the sickly green skin is the last thing you have to worry about. But food runs low and outside is the only place to get it. Amy barely survives her first venture outside, but she gets better. Still, as adept as she is at sneaking in and out of her protective fence, the last thing she expects to find is a toddler. 

She considers leaving the child for fear of any sound alerting the aliens with their insanely sensitive hearing, but she just can't bring herself to be alone anymore. And it quickly becomes clear that the child knows to be silent. Once home, Baby and Amy develop a bond that could not be any closer even if they were full-blooded sisters. Complete with their own version of sign language to communicate without sending aliens crashing into their fence, they develop a semi-normal life together. As normal as you can be in a world surrounded by savage, flesh-eating aliens. But then it all changes. Forced to escape their stronghold, Baby and Amy are on the run, and when they are captured by a spaceship, the last thing they expect is to be rescued. Once they arrive at New Hope, the compound that considers itself the cradle for a new chance at civilization, Amy realizes there may be as many monsters inside New Hope as there were outside. Only these monsters don't look like aliens. 

Holy crap, Batman! I picked up this book last night and was so enthralled by this story, I couldn't put it down until I fell asleep on it (drooling probably). This book just instantly grabbed me with fangs and claws and wouldn't let me go! I am serious. I read a LOT of YA and a whole lot of PA, but this book? Scared the crap right out of me! Those aliens were some terrifying kind of zombie/extra-terrestrial mix that is quite possibly the only thing that could scare me more than your typical, run-of-the-mill zombies. I mean, these things are green for goodness sake! There is a whole twisted backstory involving the aliens that will leave you gaping in shock and awe, but I don't want to give away too much- you deserve to have the same crazy experience of finding it all out on your own!

I really liked Amy, too. She was your typical bratty know-it-all (self-professed) who just happens to survive. She shouldn't have, but her fortres of a home kept her safe. I love her transformation that makes her a survivor BUT doesn't completely change her! It was fabulous! When she arrived at New Hope, she knew there was something fishy about the place, and she had no intention of sitting idly by as the director led a whole different behind-the-scenes kind of compound kept top-secret from the rest of the people living their in ignorant bliss... even if that meant risking her own life. Amy was awesome. She was tender, motherly, and yet she was a butt-kickin' lady who at the tender age of sixteen had no qualms about standing up against or exposing the wrongs in this false utopia. I loved it! 

And who should read this? Oh boy. I could give this to any student who needs a gripping story to keep them interested (just not the scaredy cats. Think green, fang-filled nightmares and monsters under the bed). Give this story to any boy who struggles to find an interesting book, and I promise you, a reader this story will make! In fact, it was such a great, crazy fright train of a story that I already emailed the mother of one of my students to give her the title as one of his summer reading books. Seriously. Adults who like horror stories and apocalyptic stories will love this book. Young adults will love this book. Everyone who picks it up will love this book! So what are you waiting for? It's time for you to find yourself In the After. 

Adrift at Sea

I remember reading Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor in junior high and being terrified. I don't want to bob around at sea with no idea what was going to happen to me, slowly going mad by dehydration. My husband is terrified of the ocean, and while I mock him for it endlessly, I can see where his fear comes from, especially after reading The Raft by S.A. Bodeen.

Robie lives on the Midway Atoll with her biologist parents. People think it is cool to live on an atoll, but when you are the only teenager, there is rarely an internet connection, and the only food and movies you have are the ones you schlepped over on a limited space cargo plane, you lose sight of the "coolness" quickly. So after sometime in Hawaii, she makes an impromptu decision to return home ahead of schedule. She secures a space on a cargo plane with a pilot she knows and trusts and his new copilot, Max. All is going well until an unexpected storm sends the plane hurtling into the ocean.

While Max manages to throw her out of the plan and they get into the raft, all is not well and safe. bobbing around the ocean in a raft is the furthest thing from Robie's bucket list, and now, without out food or fresh water, surviving the plane crash may have been a wasted effort. Max won't even respond to her most of the time, but his stories are comforting at least. Unfortunately, they can't survive on comfort, and as the days roll on, their chances of making it off the raft in one piece become smaller, especially when sharks are beneath them, fishing is pretty much impossible, and there is no rain in sight.  Will Robie live to see civilization, or will she succumb to the sea?

Here is the thing about S.A. Bodeen. She knows how to throw a twist you didn't see coming. In The Compound, she threw a twist that changed the ENTIRE intent of the book and had my head spinning. In this book, the twist isn't nearly as large, but it is pretty significant. Enough so to make you stop and say, "Hey! You got me!" That makes for a fun and entertaining book. Robie is an intereting character because her little acts of rebellion, like piercing her nose, pale in comparison to her will to survive. I don't think I could have done what she did to stay alive. You will like Robie from the start of the book and will find yourself cheering for her straight through to the last page.

Since this is a short book and is quite interesting, I will most likely keep it on my shelf for kids who struggle to get something to hold their attention. The monkey wrench in the middle will hold them through and the idea of surviving is great material for discussions. I didn't think the story was mind-blowing, but it was good entertainment and will appeal to a good deal of my students. The writing is neither simplistic nor intricate, so this is a perfect book for your average young adult reader. Still, I am impressed how Bodeen can get me every time!

Thrilling Sequel Takes a Bite Out of My Summer!

When Enclave by Ann Aguirre ended, we found Deuce and Fade Topside- aboveground after living underground in the Enclave all their lives. It was a change that sent the series into a completely different direction, and it injected more surprises and excitement into Outpost than you can imagine!

Deuce, Fade, Tegan, and Stalker were taken in by the people of Sanctuary, but they certainly weren't accepted by everyone immediately. Given to different foster parents, they found themselves suddenly immersed in a society that had survived within tall walls and relatively removed from the Freaks who roamed the countryside. They almost never came face to face with the Freaks, animal-like humanoids with terrifying teeth and claws, and they certainly couldn't defend themselves against them. Deuce and the others were well-trained in Freak combat, but Sanctuary saw them as children, not the lethal hunters they actually were. Forced to go to school and act like proper boys and girls, Deuce and the others struggle to fit into Sanctuary. 

When the crops are destroyed by the Freaks, it becomes clear they are no longer mindless roaming monsters with no intellect. After a couple of calculated attacks, Sanctuary is forced to acknowledge that the Freaks are getting smarter and Sanctuary is in danger. When Deuce, Fade, and Stalker offer to set up an outpost to protect the crops, the rest of the town is shamed into sending adults with them. Leaving the walls is terrifying for the people of Sanctuary, but so is starving through the winter with no crops to eat. Once they establish the outpost, however, it becomes clear the situation with the Freaks has escalated to a point that leaves Sanctuary vulnerable. But if the only people willing to do anything about it are the outsiders, how will Sanctuary survive this new threat?

I know it is difficult, sometimes, when a series takes a whole new spin, like Enclave did by throwing the kids Topside, but when done well, it can transform a series and make the sequel just as exciting as the original novel. That was certainly the case with Outpost, which extended the first story, but gave this book a whole new purpose all its own. I thought it was brilliant on Aguirre's part to do so, and it made me just as thrilled for the third book to come. We also get to see a whole new side of the characters we loved from the first book. Most transformative for me was the path Deuce traveled. Having never had a family in the Enclave, she couldn't get used to Momma Oaks, her foster mother. But when it became clear Momma Oaks really loved her, allowing herself to be the child of caring parents was an experience that made Deuce want to save Sanctuary. There were also times when you saw the ugly side of Sanctuary, which was very realistic for any community living so close together, and it made me like and believe the story even more. 

I really liked this sequel, and I think Aguirre did a great job of keeping a story going without just repeating what worked in the first book (a common mistake). The journey these characters traveled not only changed them, it changes you as a reader. You see them differently and cannot help but transform with them. The story was exciting and terrifying at times, but it keeps you wondering what is going to happen next. You will want to protect these kids, but you will also be proud of their bravery, even when the adults from Sanctuary are unwilling to take the same risks to save their own home. This was a fantastic follow-up, and I am dying to get ahold of the next book!

Is There Dark Inside All of Us?

Have you ever thought about the evil that lives inside you? Do you have a dark side? What about your friends, family, and neighbors? Now imagine that evil was let loose upon the world. Which side would you be on? The hunted Light or the hunter Dark? In Jeyn Roberts' Dark Inside you will find yourself asking those very questions.

Mason's mother's fatal car accident saved him. He ran to the hospital the minute he heard and shortly after a group of people walked into his high school with bombs, killing almost everyone. Aries survived the earthquake that toppled her bus and killed almost everyone inside, but she doesn't know if she will survive the night with the crazy people on the street trying to murder everyone they come into contact with. Clementine runs from the church where her parents and the entire town is murdered by men they grew up with, but they are still hunting her. All she can think about is her brother Heath in college on the West Coast- the same West Coast that was wiped off the map by the super earthquakes. Michael was just out for a joyride when the people in town went crazy. He barely made it off the streets alive, but the world he knew is now gone.

When massive earthquakes change the shape of the continent, people think it is the worst disaster to hit the world. What they don't know is an evil lies just under the surface of too many people and something has released it. People have turned into crazy murderers overnight, dragging survivors from their homes, hunting them at night. The hunters or Baggers aren't as crazy as they might seem- they are smart. Too smart. No place is safe from them, but the survivors need some place to live. Clementine, Michael, Mason, and Aries might never have met before the world came crashing to an end, but their new lives will bring them together. The question is, will it be in tragedy or survival?

What seemed like your standard disaster story took a whole new turn. Sure the earthquakes were destructive in a predictable way, but when people became crazed murderers, there was no answer for what happened to them. Sometimes they seemed to come out of the darkness that made them commit unspeakable acts, but others were too far gone to connect with humanity anymore. These monsters weren't "zombies" but instead a scarier type of monster- thinking, breathing, feeling monsters who had one purpose- murder those not like them. Truthfully, this was crazier and scarier than any zombie story you have ever read because these murderers can plan and scheme in order to kill you. Not a world I want to find myself in!


The story was rather violent, but it wasn't overdone. I was confused by the very open plot holes, such as what happened to make people crazy, why this coincided with the earthquakes, and why some people were "immune". There were a lot of questions unanswered that might annoy readers who need a solid plot line to follow, but if your reader just likes an exciting story, this is a good one to pass one. The four separate stories that eventually come together are interesting and a great way to show wide-spread destruction. It can be a little confusing at first when you are trying to figure out which character is which, but eventually you get the hang of it. Pretty good book in my opinion, but I am still left scratching my head over all those unanswered questions!

Society as the Cause of its Own Demise

We have weapons we don't completely understand. When the Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed, no one really understood the long-lasting consequences or the full range of destruction. Now, we have EMP bursts and sneaky ways of taking down a civilization that aren't even close to conventional weapons. How can we create and use something we know nothing about? In Ashes, by Ilsa Bick, you will see first hand how much damage we can do to our own species.

Alex has an inoperable brain tumor. She gave the treatments one last go with tiny nanotech beads of chemo that are supposed to travel through her bloodstream and cluster around the tumor to be activated later by a laser. When those beads fail, she decides to let the monster in her head have her. She takes her parents' ashes and travels to the expansive park to hike and make some important decisions. What she doesn't expect is run into a very nice gentleman and his orphaned granddaughter and then watch him die. With a pain in her head and body like she was being squeezed from all ends, Alex assumes she is dying. The old man is clearly gone, and now Alex is left with Ellie, the little girl. They have no idea what has happened, but all their electronics are fried. On their way down the mountain, they get a first hand show of just how crazy things have become- they find three teenagers eating a woman at a campsite.

Alex and Ellie get away undetected, but it is clear something is wrong. When they are attacked by a pack of dogs and another cannibalistic man, they are saved in the nick of time by Tom, a former soldier hunting the cannibal who used to be his friend. It seems some people survived, but not all are OK. Middle aged people dropped dead, older people and young children were spared, and young adults turned into zombie-like cannibals. They aren't exactly zombies- they can still feel pain, think (although only limited thought processes), are very strong, and die from normal fatal wounds, but they have lost all connection to humanity and eat anything they come across that still pumps warm blood.

Tom explains he was in the woods at the time the EMP burst and watched his friend Jim turn. Together they decide to find their way out of the woods to the ranger station. The station is abandoned, and while they stay their for a while, they know things will only get worse for the survivors. They decide to travel north to find a place to live and survive where there won't be many people (or crazy zombie-like teens who want to eat them). On the journey, they encounter what society has devolved into- looters who will do anything to stay alive. They take Ellie and wound Tom, leaving him and Alex to survive with no supplies and an infection gun shot wound. But Alex won't let Tom die and can't give up on Ellie. Will she be able to save them? Or will she lose everything... again.

Oh good grief, this book was intense! You will pick it up and won't be able to stop. I started reading, looked up about 140 pages later and realized it was almost midnight (way past my bedtime on a school night!). It was absolutely fantastic and I can't believe how it ended... Darn you Ilsa Bick! Leave me hanging with those last two sentences and just STOP! I know there are tow more books coming, but you want me to wait a whole YEAR for the next one! ARRGGHH! I call foul on that! But in all seriousness, this was an amazing, exciting, fast-paced book you won't be able to put down.

The reading level is fairly average, but there is some obvious violence you might not be comfortable giving some younger students. The violence isn't too graphic, but there is cannibalism, so you can make the judgment. The story line will keep anyone hooked, and I was one of its first victims! The characters are complex and deep, which makes you want to know more, but continue to question your feelings for them. My one critique was the strange make-up of age groups and what happened to them from the EMP. It seemed a little too random and not explained in any great depth (they assume brain chemistry had something to do with why certain age groups died, some recovered, and others turned). I hope it is explained better in the next books, because it left me a little skeptical about the premise with this book. Still, skepticism aside, this book was a crazy whirlwind that picked me up and spat me out the other side! Awesome! Simply Awesome!

A Plague Will Bring Them Together

Just thinking about what could go horribly wrong in the world will make you crazy, so why would someone want to read (so many) books about the apocalypse, you might ask? Well, because they always have an underlying positive message (well, except The Road, of course). The world may have ended, but somewhere out there is a community, a new life, a new start. The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch is a story about a boy who had nothing to lose, until he almost lost everything.

Stephen and his father just buried Stephen's grandfather, but they aren't sad. In fact, they feel relieved to have lost the burden of his grandfather's cynical, dog-eat-dog mentality. Not even 24 hours after his death, they are caught in a situation where they could either walk away and save themselves or help a person in need. They know Grandfather would make them walk away, but he isn't there anymore. Unfortunately, the very first time they take a chance to help someone, it goes horribly awry and Stephen's father is seriously hurt. With a number of broken bones and sunken into a coma, Stephen has no idea what to do, until some people stumble upon them.

At first Stephen thinks they might be the slavers returned for revenge, but after a few wide shots and a crack to the head, Stephen wakes up and finds friendly people- something he didn't think existed anymore in the world after wars, plagues, starvation, and pollution made it only a shell of what it used to be. So when he is taken to their village and they treat his father with precious medicines- a stranger they didn't even know- Stephen feels wildly out of place. He doesn't know how to react to such kind people. In the village is another person who bucks the idea of community- Jenny, the lone Chinese girl a family took in years ago. As the Chinese were responsible for releasing the Eleventh Plague which decimated the population, it is no wonder why Jenny seems to be constantly at war with the idea of a community that expects her to act and react a certain way. When Jenny and Stephen band together to seek innocent revenge on a bully, they release a band of aggression that will show the true and sometimes evil nature of human beings. What they don't realize until it's too late is that their harmless pranks could risk the lives of the only people who have ever cared about them- the people of Settler's Landing.

This was a short read, but it wasn't a disappointing one. I read a lot of post-apocalyptic and dystopia stories, as well as a lot of young adult stories (with plenty of crossover), and I was very impressed with this story. It dealt with many of the common PA themes of survival and community while still appealing to the younger crowd. Stephens character is a boy forced to grow up quickly in order to survive who is both terrified to be alone and terrified to belong to and be responsible to a community. When he sees the kids playing baseball and going to school, he can't help but yearn for a life where things were simpler and life or death wasn't a daily concern. This perspective might be nice for kids who trudge to high school begrudgingly and complain about every single homework assignment.

The story is appropriate for a wide range of students from lower middle school through high school students. In particular, it would be good for low-skilled high school students who need an easier book to read but want mature subjects. The subject matter is deep, but still appropriate for younger students. This book would also be good for any post-apocalyptic fans who also like YA! The world might have ended, but the people who survived have a good story to tell!

C for Creepy and D for Disturbing!

In a literary world where YA has come leaps and bounds (especially since I was a kid!), it is surprising to find a much older book within the genre that can compete with the great fiction that is out there right now. Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien is a really great post-apocalyptic novel that was written for the YA genre decades ago; it is a trailblazer as far as I am concerned!

The story begins with a girl named Ann Burden who has been left alone in a small valley on her parents farm to survive the aftermath of nuclear war. She is surviving well enough between the fresh food from the farm and the dry and canned goods at the local general store. When her parents, brother, and owners of the store left last fall to find other survivors and never returned, Ann knew she had to keep going as she had in order to survive.

Her lonely but peaceful existence was shattered, however, when she spotted a campfire coming her way through the barren, destroyed landscape. When the mysterious man in a big plastic suit enters the valley, she hides, afraid of what kind of man he is. When he impulsively jumps into a contaminated creek and becomes sick with radiation poisoning, however, Ann decides to abandon her hiding place in order to help him. But after she nurses him back to health, she realizes he is not happy to just share the valley with her- he wants it all, including Ann.

I have read a lot of post-apocalyptic fiction in the last 12 months, so it is hard to surprise me these days in this genre, but when the man gets better and starts actually hunting Ann, it was just so disturbing! The way it was written, the way he hunts her, and the sheer magnitude of being the last two alive in this second horror scenario, got to me! It was truly unnerving to see his calculation and deception as he ties up her dog to use for tracking her, locks the store where she is getting her supplies, and takes the keys to her tractor.

This was a really interesting story and quite easy to read with low vocabulary level and comprehension levels. But I don't think this would be a great story for middle schools students- it is just too creepy in a subtle way that gives you the shivers! It would be a GREAT book for an older student who has a low reading level but seeks mature reading material. Now I am going to have to stockpile a HAZMAT suit along with my canned goods, shelter, and ark! I have got to find some cheerier books!

Who Worries About the Moon?

I have been addicted to post-apocalyptic and dystopia fiction lately. In my literary travels, it has been hard to find too much PA or dystopian YA fiction, but I found a really great series with Susan Beth Pfeffer's The Last Survivors series. She has the sensitivity and understanding of a young adult author combined with the hard, stark truth of a post-apocalyptic author. It is a wonderful combination!


In the first book, Life as We Knew it, the story begins with a family in Pennsylvania. A meteor is scheduled to hit the moon, and the whole world is excited to witness the phenomenon. However, something goes terribly wrong, and scientists misjudged the size, density, and power of the meteor. When it hits the moon, it knocks it closer into Earth's orbit, causing a host of problems the world couldn't have fathomed. The pull of the closer moon on the tides causes tidal waves and tsunamis that ravage the coastal cities. The increased gravitational pull causes the earth's crust to weaken in spots where earthquakes ravage the world and volcanoes are created. The volcanoes are so numerous and powerful that they spew such acrid ash into the sky with such enormity that the sun is even blocked out, eventually changing the climate of the world.

Miranda tells the story of the meteor and her family's survival through a journal she is keeping. The family sticks together and manages to gather as much canned food as possible before the world really takes a nose dive. Thanks to the resourcefulness of Miranda's mother and her disciplined use of the food, they are able to make it through the summer and into the early winter, but they quickly start to run out of food. A flu epidemic ravages through the town and Miranda is forced to take care of her mother and both her brothers. But when they begin to run out of food, it looks like they will all starve to death...


In the second book, The Dead and the Gone, the story follows the impact of the moon's shift upon a family in New York. Alex Morales is forced to take care of his sisters, Bri and Julie, in anyway possible since his parents are presumed dead. His incredible faith and involvement in the church is both integral in his family's survival, and in the death of his sister. He must do things that go against everything he believes in to stay alive, but he does it with great burden and guilt. New York is slowly dying, and the people left inside might never be able to flee. The government is keeping the city alive long enough to save the dignitaries, the priceless artwork and artifacts, the history, but they aren't nearly as concerned for the people left behind. Finally, Alex realizes they have to get out, in anyway they can...


In the final book of the trilogy, The World We Live In, Miranda and Alex's stories come together. Miranda's father had left the east coast with his new wife to find her parents in the first book, but they return to Pennsylvania with other survivors: Alex, Julie, a friend named Charlie, and Miranda's new half-sister. Now the families must try to survive together, especially when there is barely enough to feed Miranda, her mother, and her two brothers. But they all come together and vow to make it work. However, Alex has other plans to take Julie to a convent in New York and leave her there. When everyone protests, he insists they stop being a burden on the family and seek out their own destinies. What he didn't expect was to fall in love with Miranda.

This is a great story, and I loved how the first two books are totally different stories that come together in the final installment. I liked the fact that the story was Miranda's journal in the first and third books, but I had to adjust to Alex's story being told in the third person. I was also skeptical of the strong religious aspects of the second book, but since their presence only revolved around Alex and his family, I think it was Pfeffer's representation of a faithful Latino family. I definitely liked Miranda's story more than Alex's, but that was because I could relate to Miranda's situation in rural Pennsylvania more than Alex's life in NYC. Overall, however, this was a great series for a variety of ages. It is talked about in many post-apocalyptic circles by adults, but it is written in a way to be appealing yet not overwhelming for the younger crowd. I think this is appropriate for a high-skilled middle schooler up to high school aged students. The books are fast reads and very interesting! But you may never look at the moon the same again...

Also, if you are interested, Pfeffer has a cute blog at http://susanbethpfeffer.blogspot.com/