Reviews for Hunger %3A a Gone novel
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Gr 7 Up-In the second in a planned six-book series, the children of Perdito Beach, CA, have survived without adults for three months following the FAYZ, a nuclear event that caused everyone over the age of 14 to vanish and an impenetrable barrier to rise for 20 miles around the town. Now their food is almost gone, and in their desperation and fear, the young people are beginning to sort themselves into factions; those without special powers opposing those who have them. To add to the suspense, a terrifying presence that calls itself the Gaiaphage, a being of overwhelming hunger, is insinuating itself into the minds of the susceptible. Like Gone (HarperTeen, 2008), this novel is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach. Nonstop action and recurring scenes of graphic violence, death, and torture will keep readers on the edge of their seats as they race toward the climactic cliff-hanger ending. Give this to teens who liked Stephen King's The Stand (Doubleday, 1990) or William Golding's Lord of the Flies (Penguin, 1959).-Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
As their numbers diminish, the kids of the FAYZ struggle to survive. Food is strictly rationed. Killer worms haunt fruit and vegetable fields. Sam, the 15-year-old mayor of Perdido Beach, has to settle petty disputes among the trapped FAYZ residents. When more kids develop superpowers, Perdido Beach's population begins to split into Team Mutant and Team Normal. Sam, however, has bigger problems than the town's splintering. His evil twin brother, Caine, has awakened after three months of delirium, and Caine has big plans to destroy Sam's town. The breathtaking pace, thrilling action and gruesome monsters of Gone (2008) are back in a big way. Unfortunately, so are the stilted dialogue, the frustration that comes from the author writing much and saying very little and blatant sexism. In one passage, Sam "is struck by" how "good" an 81-pound anorexic girl looks. Sam's beautiful genius girlfriend, Astrid, only once thinks a negative thought about having to care for her autistic five-year-old brother. Readers who have not read Gone will be lost, thanks to an inadequate recap. Missable. (Science fiction. 12 up) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
In the sequel to 2008's Gone, things have only gotten worse for the kids trapped in the small area around Perdido Beach, Calif. After three months, they still have no contact with the outside world, more dangerous mutant animals are cropping up and food supplies are becoming perilously scarce. Even as Caine starts to recover from the confrontation with the town leader (and half-brother) Sam, the evil gaiaphage exerts its influence, manipulating Caine and others in a plan to gain more power. The ongoing divide between kids who have developed powers and ones who haven't also threatens to lead to violence. Grant throws everything at the children, from gory deaths every bit as nasty as in mainstream horror to sexual tension, eating disorders and drug use. The large cast of characters-from a variety of racial and sexual backgrounds-might be hard for some to keep track of, but readers looking for intense, nearly nonstop action and emotional drama will find lots to enjoy, even as the climactic ending sets up another sequel. Ages 12-up. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Publishers Weekly
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
In the sequel to 2008's Gone, things have only gotten worse for the kids trapped in the small area around Perdido Beach, Calif. After three months, they still have no contact with the outside world, more dangerous mutant animals are cropping up and food supplies are becoming perilously scarce. Even as Caine starts to recover from the confrontation with the town leader (and half-brother) Sam, the evil gaiaphage exerts its influence, manipulating Caine and others in a plan to gain more power. The ongoing divide between kids who have developed powers and ones who haven't also threatens to lead to violence. Grant throws everything at the children, from gory deaths every bit as nasty as in mainstream horror to sexual tension, eating disorders and drug use. The large cast of characters-from a variety of racial and sexual backgrounds-might be hard for some to keep track of, but readers looking for intense, nearly nonstop action and emotional drama will find lots to enjoy, even as the climactic ending sets up another sequel. Ages 12-up. (June) Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
In this sequel to Gone, everyone's starving in a new world without adults. The rich kids clash with the townies, the mutants fight the normals, and the insidious Darkness is coming for them all. The dramatic tension peters out after a two-hundred-page climactic battle scene, but fans of dystopian novels will gobble this one up despite its excesses. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Horn Book
From HORN BOOK, Copyright © The Horn Book, used with permission.
In this sequel to Gone, everyone's starving in a new world without adults. The rich kids clash with the townies, the mutants fight the normals, and the insidious Darkness is coming for them all. The dramatic tension peters out after a two-hundred-page climactic battle scene, but fans of dystopian novels will gobble this one up despite its excesses. Copyright 2009 of The Horn Book, Inc. All rights reserved.
School Library Journal
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Gr 7 Up-In the second in a planned six-book series, the children of Perdito Beach, CA, have survived without adults for three months following the FAYZ, a nuclear event that caused everyone over the age of 14 to vanish and an impenetrable barrier to rise for 20 miles around the town. Now their food is almost gone, and in their desperation and fear, the young people are beginning to sort themselves into factions; those without special powers opposing those who have them. To add to the suspense, a terrifying presence that calls itself the Gaiaphage, a being of overwhelming hunger, is insinuating itself into the minds of the susceptible. Like Gone (HarperTeen, 2008), this novel is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach. Nonstop action and recurring scenes of graphic violence, death, and torture will keep readers on the edge of their seats as they race toward the climactic cliff-hanger ending. Give this to teens who liked Stephen King's The Stand (Doubleday, 1990) or William Golding's Lord of the Flies (Penguin, 1959).-Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.
Three months after the events of Gone (2008), in which everyone over the age of 14 disappears, food is getting scarce and more kids are developing powers, leading to a battle for control between normals and moofs. A larger and more sinister element emerges as well: the Darkness, awakened and hungry, is infiltrating minds to manipulate children to do its bidding. Disturbing, brilliantly plotted, and boasting a balanced mix of action and scheming, Grant's book also features multidimensional characters that embody a range of good and evil. While second books in series sometimes fall short, that's anything but the case here.--Koss, Melanie Copyright 2009 Booklist
