Fallout

FALLOUT by Todd Strasser. Candlewick, September 2013.


Strasser opens his newest offering for teens with this question by asking (and answering) a what if question: what if Russia had dropped the bomb in the 60s? When Scott's father builds a bomb shelter, the rest of the neighbors think he is crazy. No one is going to drop the bomb; there is too much for both countries to lose after all. But the unthinkable happens and Scott, along with his parents and younger brother head into the shelter. Frantic neighbors begin to crowd in hoping to gain access. The shelter is built for 4 and only supplied with a minimum of food for the time they must stay inside to be safe from the fallout. But now there are 6. How will they all survive? Strasser maintains the suspense by switching back and forth between events in Scott's life before the attack and then scenes in the shelter itself. Kids today never experienced the duck and cover drills, never sat and saw the threats played out on television. To them, this is history, a history they should know.

chilling out

Even though it has been in the triple digits outside this past week, I have been chilled through and through as I read Mike Mullins' ASHFALL (Tanglewood, October 2011). When a supervolcano erupts in Yellowstone, ash spews far and wide turning daylight into darkness. Alex is home alone when this happens: his parents and younger sister have gone off to visit family in Illinois while he stayed home in Iowa. Without electricity, running water, and food supplies things turn nasty quite quickly. Alex decides to leave his neighborhood and travel to Illinois to find his family. It is a journey fraught with many dangers. First, there is the ash which is caustic to breathe and hard to traverse. Marauders looking to prey on innocent travelers pose any even bigger threat. Readers who loved Susan Beth Pfeffer's trio of books beginning with LIFE AS WE KNEW IT, will definitely want to read this novel. Chapters are short (3-5 pp.) making this ideal for a quick read aloud every day; it should also appeal to reluctant readers because of the action-packed scenes where Alex must defend himself and others. <370>

There will be a sequel to ASHFALL in 2012, ASHEN WINTER. You can read an excerpt on the author's web site: www.mikemullinauthor.com