Aliens may be attacking, but teen angst still holds sway in this reluctant reader series.
A high school choir field trip comes to a halt when alien invaders generate an electromagnetic pulse, grounding planes, turning off phones, and shutting down power plants.
Kayla has hated fellow soprano Steph since third grade. Now high school juniors, the two are even more strident in their rivalry. Their bickering and constant one-upmanship continue as resources dwindle and a long hike looks inevitable. An alien flyover and a carjacking leave the group stranded and force Kayla and Steph to bury the hatchet before their conflict buries them all. In The Fallout, by Glasko Klein, a mall seems like the perfect place to lie low and stock up on supplies following an alien attack, but 16-year-old Nina never imagined hiding out with the school weirdo, her ex-boyfriend, and a superjock. When their saviors start acting more like prison guards, Sanjay and his friends decide to break out of their school in Lockdown, by Raelyn Drake (Realm of Mystics, 2017, etc.). In Getting Home by Stephanie Perry Moore (Sit on Top, 2015, etc.), Bailey and her younger brother, Blake, are caught on a bus between Atlanta and Montgomery when an EMP attack shuts everything down. While an alien attack is the common thread, these stories are less about extraterrestrial problems and more about issues common to many teenagers. Characters struggle with pride, anger, lost love, rivalries, and first crushes. While the majority of characters are assumed white, names indicate ethnic diversity in Lockdown, and the characters are implied African-American in Getting Home.
Aliens may be attacking, but teen angst still holds sway in this reluctant reader series. (Fiction. 12-18)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5415-2573-3
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Darby Creek
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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