The Young World

April 28, 2014
Screenwriter/director Weitz (The Golden Compass; About a Boy) kicks off a post-apocalyptic trilogy with a riveting adventure in which teenagers—the only ones immune to a fatal plague known as the Sickness—have inherited the Earth and are fighting over the remnants of New York City. Narration alternates between Jefferson, the cautious and protective leader of the Washington Square Clan, and Donna, who Jefferson is falling for. When one of the group’s members, Brainbox, discovers a clue that might explain the origin of the Sickness, a few members of the tribe embark on an epic cross-town quest for information. As they make their way through the ruined city, they contend with cultists, cannibals, slavers, wild animals, and more. Weitz offers a satisfying YA interpretation of the Greek classic Anabasis, brimming with grisly encounters and gallows humor. He also finds room to touch upon issues of race, class, commercialism, and sexuality in nuanced moments that are sharply juxtaposed with the near-constant dangers and seeming hopelessness of the larger picture. A game-changing cliffhanger will have readers ready for the next book. Ages 15–up. Agent: Suzanne Gluck, William Morris Endeavor.

October 27, 2014
Weitz kicks off a trilogy with a riveting adventure in which teenagers—the only ones immune to a fatal plague known as the Sickness—have inherited the Earth and are fighting over the remnants of New York City. Jefferson and Donna lead the group in their search to find a cure, with each chapter flipping back and forth between their points of view. Narrators Julian and Locke turn in a mixed performance of this postapocalyptic YA tale. Julian provides the voice for Jefferson and aptly captures his internal thoughts, but his portrayal, which sounds distanced and soft spoken, does not quite meld with the character of Loche’s Donna, who sounds a little too bubbly for how the character is written. Both narrations could use better sound balancing, as there are times when adjusting the audio is necessary to hear both characters. Ages 15–up. A Little, Brown hardcover.

April 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-A postapocalyptic novel told from the point of view of three teens in New York City who have banded together after a mysterious sickness wipes out the entire population of children and adults. The survivors are faced not only with the breakdown of society but also certain death when their hormonal levels even out. When food dwindles in the neighborhood where their tribe has hunkered down, they decide to risk a trip to the main branch of the New York Public Library to find a scientific study that may explain the origins of the sickness. On their quest, they encounter a group of fanatical cannibals, a misogynistic gang of entrepreneurs, mole people living in the subway system, and a very organized group creating weapons from 3-D printers. In the course of their journey lives are lost, bravery tested, and childhood relationships become something more. What they eventually find is a research island where secret experiments are being fiercely guarded, but the brainiac of the group is able to trick their captors into letting him try to find a cure. A giant cliff-hanger at the end ensures that a sequel will soon follow. While the plot employs some very predictable story lines the characters are interesting, the action moves quickly, and the context of a broken NYC is so compelling that readers will find it hard to put this book down. Chapters written from alternating perspectives offer the chance to see how the same situations are interpreted by either the boy next door, the sweet girl with the tough exterior, or the intellectual with traits common to people with Asperger's. At times the dialogue inexplicably changes from that of a regular book to a movie script, which can be jarring. However, readers will likely breeze by this minor distraction while they're frantically flipping pages to find out what happens next.-Sunnie Lovelace, Wallingford Public Library, CT

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2014
A twisted Neverland where you don't get older, you just die. As if traffic and congestion weren't enough to cope with in Manhattan, the rapid-fire, incurable Sickness has begun eliminating New Yorkers. Strangely, the only unaffected residents are teenagers. Stranger still, once the surviving teens reach their 18th birthdays, fever, coughs, delirium and death swiftly follow. A short life means there's no reason for civilized order, so New York devolves into Mad Max-like chaos. Union Square and Washington Square are no longer overpriced zip codes, they're pocket territories for tribes of gun-toting teens as likely to trade a pig for people as they are to resort to cannibalism. When the brainiac of one of these tribes theorizes that he can cure the Sickness, a cluster of five dives headfirst into the task of either saving civilization or prematurely ending their already doomed lives. Inclusion of New York landmarks lends an authenticity that makes the chaos frighteningly plausible. Through the dual narration of Jefferson, the focal tribe leader, and Donna, his crush, veteran screenwriter and director Weitz presents a veritable dichotomy of literary and commercial; Jefferson's chapters are intellectually elevated, while Donna often sounds like an elongated Facebook post. The action perseveres, the sex, blood and violence dominate, and race and class clashes continue headlong into the sequel. A post-apocalyptic teen novel that's far from just another post-apocalyptic teen novel. (Post-apocalyptic adventure. 13 & up)

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April 1, 2014
Grades 9-12 It's two years since the sickness hit, killing all adults and children. Only teenagers remain to rule the world. In a Lord of the Flies fashion, the social order has broken down, and the survivors have gathered together into tribes. Everyone expires now at age 18, and when Jefferson's older brother dies, the leadership of Manhattan's Washington Square Tribe passes to the reluctant teen. Soon thereafter, a possible cure for the sickness is discoveredor is it a chimera? To find out, Jeff and four members of his tribe, including Donna, the girl he loves, undertake a perilous journey in search of the truth. Telling his story in the alternating voices of Jeff and Donna, noted film director Weitz, in his first YA novel, has done a good job of meticulously building his postapocalyptic world, though sometimes at the expense of action. Still, there is more than enough to keep readers turning the pages and anticipating volume two of what promises to bewhat else?a trilogy and ultimately, perhaps, a movie? HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Weitz's high profile in Hollywoodand a five-star marketing pushhave already created plenty of anticipation for his youth-book debut.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)