Yellowstone Erupts: The Apocalypse is Now

Ashfall by Mike Mullin
(Based on an ARC provided by the author.)

In this thrilling, debut novel of "cataclysmic natural disaster," Alex Halprin lives in modern day Cedar Falls, Idaho, playing video games and arguing with his little sister on a regular basis. One day when his family has left for the weekend to visit an uncle, the unthinkable happens: Yellowstone erupts in a volcanic supereruption, leaving thousands of miles under layers of ash and projectile rock with no modern form of communication and few resources for immediate survivors. Alex begins the harrowing journey to Warren, Illinois, where his family is--he hopes--safely harbored with other relatives.

Alex's journey is laborious and often heart wrenching as he cross-country skis through the ash. He makes his way through cities, towns, and open, desolated land, meeting friends and strangers alike and finds himself running from cutthroat murderers, looters, and others like him just trying to survive. At one stop, Alex passes out from injuries and ends up at a farm where strangers Darla and her mother nurse him back to health; a steady relationship begins to bond the two teenagers. When tragedy strikes again and forces them back on the road, Darla accompanies Alex on his journey to Illinois, and they continue to skirt danger, both environmental and man-made.

It's a realistic, post-apocalyptic thriller. By that, I mean that the thrills are quick and gripping, but they aren't on every page; Mullin doesn't cop out to the Hollywood-ready scripts that a lot of authors (James Patterson comes to mind) throw at young readers. Instead, Mullin has created a storyline full of highs and lows with mature downtime rooted in the everyday difficulties of physical and emotional survival. It's the mix of action, science, thrills, romance, and the nitty-gritty details that make this book so gripping and good.

While I found Ashfall a little slow going at first, Mullin seemed to quickly gain more confidence in his own voice as the plot got going, and after the first few chapters I found myself thinking less about the words he used and more about what was happening, a good sign in any plot-driven, post-apocalyptic story.
The beauty of Ashfall is that the protagonist matures gradually as time goes on. Alex is believable, if conveniently physically fit for a video gamer (he has umpteen belts in taekwando), and his horror, exhaustion, and even physical arousal (nothing too descriptive) all keep him from becoming a super-human survivor. In fact, for a good portion of the book Darla outdoes him: she knows her tools, can slaughter and butcher a rabbit with minimal waste, and is the female equivalent of a teenage MacGyver.

Fans of Michael Grant's Gone series will appreciate this rough, dismal world where kids survive almost by determination alone. The story is close enough to a potential reality to be chilling: as Grant himself said of Ashfall, "The scariest apocalypse is one that could really happen."

Planned as the start of a trilogy, Ashfall is sure to appeal to readers of The Hunger Games, Gone, Hatchet, and any other number of survival and post-apocalyptic stories. (Check out the first two chapters here.) This is one to keep on your to-read list once it hits shelves on October 11th--I definitely recommend it!
-Jenny

Age 14+ (some mature content)
Copyright October 2011
ISBN: 9781933718552
Image from http://www.mikemullinauthor.com/

Anne Frank's World Re-Visited

Annexed by Sharon Dogar

In Amsterdam in the middle of World War II, two Jewish families--the Franks and the Van Pels--hide away in an annex above an office, praying for survival and the downfall of the Nazis. In Annexed, Dogar has created her vision of what it was like in the annex with Anne Frank from Peter van Pels' point of view. To take a time and character so closely scrutinized by the world and so well documented--by the world renowned diary of Anne Frank--is a challenge, to say the least, but Dogar has done a good job at not over-sensationalizing the material. She also manages to stay true to what she believes might have gone through the mind of a teenage boy in a time of personal and world-wide crisis. Following Peter from the morning before seclusion to his death (potentially, according to records, in a concentration camp sick bay), readers see the hope and the despair, two sides of many moments he experienced as his memories are shared in the book.

Full of hate and fear, love, shame, sexual longing, wavering faith, and all the “why” questions one could ponder, Peter examines life both inside and outside the walls of the annex and tries to make sense of it all, all the while experiencing the morphing relationships inside the hideout as tensions flow between the families and genders. Why, Peter asks, must I hide instead of fight? Why do we have to be the chosen people? Why does being Jewish have to define everything about me? Will I ever experience life beyond this point?

Dogar’s writing is powerful and conveys life in the annex as it probably was: stifling, claustrophobic, lacking in privacy, and frustrating while at times also joyful, grateful, and full of the knowledge that beauty truly is in the small, unnoticed things. As Dogar examines the emotions Peter, the lone adolescent male, might have felt as he matured, readers also get a sense of the other characters through Peter’s descriptions of them. And unlike other narratives, Dogar follows Peter and imagines--with the aid of research--what he must have gone through after capture, both in Auschwitz and on the death march that followed in his final days.

I highly recommend this, whether you're a fan of literary fiction, historical fiction, coming-of-age stories, or just about any other type. It's not a light story, as the premise indicates, but it's worth the journey. This as Dogar's first historical fiction, and she worked hard to get the research right (though she admits in the back to altering minor timeline events for continuity's sake). The whole product is well done, emotional, and absolutely worth the read.

-Jenny

Age 13+ (some mature content)
Copyright October 2010
ISBN: 9780547501956
Available as an eBook
Image from www.goodreads.com

Chasing Storms

Storm Runners by Roland Smith (Book 1 Storm Runners)

Chase Masters and his father are known as Storm Runners. They chase after extreme weather and help people prepare. However, while they are chasing storms, they are both running from their past. A tragic car accident took Chase's mother and younger sister two years before. Some time later, Chase's father was struck by lightning, and after being in a coma for two days, a new man was born.

Both are heading down to Florida to help prepare people for Hurricane Emily. Chase's father heads for where he thinks the hurricane will make landfall and leaves Chase with "family friends." There Chase meets Nicole Rossi, whose family owns and operates a circus. The Rossi family lives in Florida in the off season with their menagerie of animals.

Momma Rossi, Nicole's grandmother, predicts that the hurricane will actually make landfall where they live. Chase's instincts agree, but he does what he was taught by his father: Be prepared, be smart.

On Chase's first and only day at another school, Hurricane Emily makes landfall, and it's up to Chase, Nicole, and and new acquaintance Rashawn to survive the onslaught with danger all around in one of the deadliest hurricanes on record.

Roland Smith is one of the best writers for young readers, especially for boys. This story may be short, but it is full of energy. Smith has a way of writing that puts you smack dab in the middle of the story.

With the loss of his mother and sister, Chase and his father have held up remarkably well, maintaining their family of two. I get the sense that Chase longs for more. With the job that he and his father do, they are on the move lot, which means many different schools for Chase and no sense of permanence or a chance to make friends his own age.

When the hurricane hits, Chase uses the knowledge taught by his father to help him and his friends survive. This is a great series for fans of Hatchet. Regardless, it's Roland Smith...go out and pick this book up. Then when you're done, read the rest of his books. Peak is my absolute favorite...if you'd like a recommendation.

The Surge, Book Two in this series will be out in September 2011.

-Ruby

Ages 9-12
Publisher: Scholastic Press (March 1, 2011)
ISBN: 9780545081757
Not available as an eBook at this time.

Fighting to Survive in a Flooded World

X Isle by Steve Augarde

In the not-so-distant future, climate change has taken over and the earth has been submerged, oceans covering the majority of land on Earth. The survivors are few and struggling, trying to live with limited resources and virtually no technology. There is one beacon of hope: Eck's Island. Jokingly renamed X Isle, it is a place where a select few--young boys only--are taken to work and, as payment, are properly fed and cared for by the divers and salvagers who hire them.

When Baz is selected to board the Eck brothers' boat, it seems like a dream come true. Along with Ray, another recruit, Baz excitedly awaits their arrival, only to realize that their paradise is tainted, not the safe haven they were promised. Clustered in disgusting conditions and forced to work on little food at exhaustive tasks, they take physical and mental abuse daily from their so-called saviors. Baz and Ray protect one another as best they can, and soon they bond with the other boys, trying to survive the brutal labor and the crazy sermons of "Preacher John," the Eck's father and manager of the salvage operation they run. As tempers rise and Preacher John's religious declarations of the apocalypse escalate, the boys realize they're in a dangerous game of survival, and they must plot a way to either escape or be the last ones standing.

X Isle is yet another future interpretation of our world in which the adults have made a mess of things and kids are the only ones who can figure it all out. If you enjoyed The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games, Augarde's close-to-home adventure will keep you up reading into the early hours.

Though a bit of a stretch at times, the story is compelling and detailed, a well described struggle for life as a small band of boys fights for food, self protection, and eventually their lives. With some incredible, emotionally tense scenes and crazy twists throughout, this post-apocalyptic thriller is a really good read. Strongly recommended for the dystopian, post-apocalyptic fan base—X Isle is a good bet when teen fans of the sub genre think they've run out of options.

-Jenny

Age 13+
Copyright July 2010

ISBN: 9780385751933

Available as an eBook

Image from www.goodreads.com

"Perfect Society" Meets Punk-Rock Action and Thrills

Divergent by Veronica Roth
(Review based on Advanced Reader Copy of book.)

If I could tell you (the adoring public) to read a book and know--absolutely know--that you would pick it up and actually read it, this post would read "Divergent by Veronica Roth comes out in May. Read it. The end."

Sadly, my every whim does not typically get carried out by the rest of the world, so here are some plot points and other fun facts.

The world has changed into one none of us would recognize. In order to avoid wars and the negative aspects of humanity that go along with them, a dystopian American society has broken up into five distinct factions, each one a representative of a virtue that some people think can keep conflict at bay. In Candor, members strive to only tell the truth, hurtful or uncomfortable as it might be. Dauntless is for the brave, the protectors. Amity lifestyle is that of peace, no matter how it is obtained, while Erudites value knowledge above all else. And, lastly, there is Abnegation, dictating a plain, selfless lifestyle, others first at all times.

Having grown up in Abnegation, Beatrice has always lived a quiet, subservient life, though not a bad one. On the eve of her sixteenth birthday, she and her brother enter a simulation, rather like a career test, to tell them in which faction they most belong. Beatrice, though, is Divergent--for her there is no answer, and for her own protection, she can tell no one. Surprising even herself at the choosing ceremony, she walks away from her family and all she knows to join the dangerous, studded and tattooed Dauntless group, the daredevils and action-seekers of her world.

What follows is a dangerous, passionate ride through which our protagonist learns strength, freedom of spirit, and independence as she works to prove herself in a faction that might never accept her for her prior lifestyle. These punk-rocker types jump off of buildings, hurl knives at one another, and face their darkest fears in realistic simulations in order to grow stronger, better, and fearless, and it is a grueling process for everyone, including the reader. Some fellow Dauntless initiates become friends while others become feared opponents, and even their instructor, Four, makes Beatrice's new life confusing as she finds herself both repelled and drawn to his rock-steady attitude and frustrating ways.

Throughout her journey, Beatrice must put up with verbal abuse about her home faction and a steady stream of published insults from one faction to another, and tensions rise throughout the city. Is another war coming, or will everything settle down? What defines loyalty, bravery, and equality? What role will Beatrice play in her new Dauntless family, and is it worth everything she has lost and left behind?

This action-packed, thrilling book is full of interesting characters and intense plot turns. While Beatrice occasionally fumbles and works to deal with her own insecurities, she is a strong female protagonist, working hard to prove her worth, not just to others but also to herself. Occasional cliches pop up--I have yet to read a book without at least one or two--but Roth's writing is such that as a reader, I don't actually care. It's just so good!

Divergent is awesome. Really. If you're a fan of the Hunger Games/Post-apocalyptic/Perfect-society/Science-fiction world, you will enjoy it.

Author Veronica Roth is a 22-year old graduate of Northwestern University, and Divergent is her debut novel, the first in a trilogy. It has already been optioned for a movie (the film rights went to Summit Entertainment), and I expect the entire enterprise to be a runaway hit (and rightly so). Publication of Divergent is expected May 3, 2011.

-Jenny

Age 14+

Copyright May 2011

ISBN: 9780062024022

Available as an eBook (at publication)
Image from www.harpercollins.com

The Power to Kill: Joint Review

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Ruby's take: Katsa was only eight years old when she killed for the first time. She is one of the "Graced," a person who is distinguished by their eyes, which are different colors. She has the Grace of fighting and is used by her uncle, King Randa, to be his "lady killer," to carry out torture and killings to satisfy any wrongs (right or otherwise) done to him.

In order to bring some good from her Grace, Katsa and her friends form the "Council" to help people throughout the seven kingdoms who have been unjustly punished, imprisoned, or abused. Through this secret council, Katsa rescues an elderly man who turns out to be a prince from a neighboring kingdom. His grandson, Prince Po, comes looking for him in the kingdom of Middluns.

Po is also Graced with superior fighting skills and is a welcome fighting partner for Katsa. The two form a close friendship...which turns into more. Both are pulled into a plot that starts with the kidnapping of Po's grandfather and turns into something far more dangerous. Po and Katsa have to rely on each other and their Graces to survive.

This is one of the best books I've read this year. I had put off reading it, but when I found out that a third book (Book 2 is Fire, and the third is tentatively titled Bitterblue) will be coming out later this year, I had to hurry up and read it. Cashore's writing is fluid, descriptive, and utterly delightful. She really knows how to bring the story to life. All the characters are relatable, but the focus of the story is Katsa, and what a woman! Being graced with the ability to fight while controlling her anger is one of the many challenges she faces, but she does so with great courage and strength. Prince Po is definitely a great match for her, as he respects her abilities and who she is. Best line in the whole book: "If there's anyone I wish to stun at dinner, I'll hit him in the face." All in all, a great first novel.

-Ruby

Jenny's take: My turn! I read Graceling about a year ago and loved it. I'll leave the summary bits out for the most part (since Ruby covered it above), but I will say that a vital part of Katsa's struggle is internal as she comes to terms with not only her grace and how to handle herself but also her response to those around her (including those with other graces). Her physical journey turns into an emotional one as she starts, for the first time, to allow others into her heart and mind. And the best part? She kicks butt the whole time. Think of a female gladiator/Robin Hood/progressive princess/avenger/assassin, and you've got a pretty good vision of Katsa.

Cashore has found a way to combine about a billion genres into one fantastic book: action, fantasy, survival, epic journey, romance, and mystery, to name a few. To cap it all off, she did an amazing and fluid job; her writing style grabbed my attention from the start and kept me captivated all the way through. Fans of The Hunger Games trilogy will enjoy the independent fighter Cashore has created, along with the in-depth and beautiful fantasy world that completes the package.

As a follow-up, read Fire, also by Cashore. It's a prequel of sorts, though there is only one overlap character and the story takes place in a different part of the world with monsters and people of an entirely different nature. It makes for another great read!

-Jenny

Ages 13+

Publisher: Graphia (September 2009)

ISBN: 9780547258300

Also available as an eBook.
Image from www.bn.com