The Passage

The Passage by Justin Cronin
published by Ballantine Books, 2010

784 pages

approximate age range: 15+

Technically this book contains vampires. Technically. But none of them are named Edward, none of them sparkle, and no one is falling in love with them. Not even a little bit. Spanning almost a hundred years, The Passage is a prodigious epic that takes us through America as it descends into a devastating cataclysm and then follows survivors trying to build lives in a horrifying post-apocalyptic world. At the beginning we meet Amy, a normal 6 year old who is living an impoverished life with her mother who loves her, but does not have the means to care for her. We also meet Wolgast, an FBI agent with nothing to lose since the death of his daughter and his divorce. These two are thrown together when Wolgast is assigned to bring Amy to a secret facility in Colorado where military scientists are working on Project Noah, a series of experiments involving infecting death row inmates with a virus from the jungles of South America in the hopes of making them into the ultimate weapons -- soldiers that have super strength and live forever. Not surprisingly this research does not go according to plan and the unstoppable vampire-like creatures that the scientists have created escape, killing or infecting everyone in their path and bringing forth the demise of an entire nation, and possibly, the entire world.

For teens that like being completely immersed in a world, getting to know a handful of characters, and following them on their journeys, The Passage will be a satisfying and engaging read. While the novel starts off with a lot of action, the pace slows throughout the middle of the work, becoming more of a character study than a thriller. At over 750 pages, this is a long book, and as Cronin has noted, The Passage is the first in a trilogy, so there is much more to come. Consequently, readers who love engrossing themselves in books and have hearty attention spans will enjoy this saga and appreciate Cronin's detailed timeline and attention to creating very realistic and relatable characters.

However, many readers may feel that The Passage is simply too long and would benefit from having a few hundred pages edited out. The middle of the book moves slowly, turning immediately from an adventure tale that takes place during the heart of an apocalypse to a slow story about a town of survivors 90 years later, their thoughts and feelings, and how they formed a society in a drastically different world. It is not until the last third of the work that the action picks up again and re-energizes readers, by which time it may be too late for many teens. Another post-apocalyptic book like Jonathan Maberry's Rot and Ruin would be a better bet for most teens as it contains many of the same scenarios and themes (a town of people alone in a desolate world overrun by monsters, the struggles survivors face daily, how they have formed a new society when the world was destroyed), yet the pacing is much quicker, the action is more frequent, and the dedication needed to finish it is much smaller (Rot and Ruin is only 480 pages).

Still, don't be daunted in recommending this book to interested teens. While the action in The Passage does get a bit bloody at times, not surprising when murderous vampires are on the loose, it never becomes overly graphic. In addition, while sexual relationships are discussed, they also remain more hinted at than explicitly described and though mature themes are brought forth through secondary characters who, for instance, have pasts laced with murder, pedophilia, and rape, for the most part the particulars of these events are not discussed in detail.

Cronin has mentioned in interviews that a sequel is on its way, though his most hopeful estimate of its release date is 2013, so fans who want to learn what happens after The Passage's cliffhanger ending will have a long wait ahead of them.

The Passage has an official website with news, video, and even an I-Phone app: http://enterthepassage.com/

There is also a book trailer:

Read-alike suggestions:

Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

The Enemy by Charlie Higson

The Walking Dead graphic novel series by Robert Kirkman

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Stone Child

The Stone Child by Dan Poblocki
published by Random House Books for Young Readers, 2009
288 pages
approximate age level: 9-13

Twelve-year old Eddie Fennicks thinks it’s pretty neat that he’s moving to Gatesweed, the town where his absolute favorite author Nathaniel Olmstead used to live and work before he mysteriously disappeared thirteen years earlier. In fact, Eddie can’t believe his luck when before he’s even unpacked, his antique-hunting parents give him what appears to be a battered journal by Olmstead himself written in code. Excited to investigate the book, and the ominous sounding “Olmstead Curse,” Eddie starts asking questions around town -- but something strange is going on in Gatesweed, something its residents are too scared to talk about, something that has to do with Olmstead and his terrifying stories. Soon Eddie and his friends Maggie and Harris start seeing really creepy things -- unnatural creatures that bear a striking resemblance to the monsters they thought existed only in Olmstead's imagination. But what if everything he wrote is real? Eddie’s been reading Olmstead's books for years -- now, can he survive living in one?

Fans of the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series by Alvin Schwartz who are unsure about what to read next can rejoice because The Stone Child is a truly creepy, stay-awake-all-night-with-the-light-on story that is perfect for them. There aren’t many children’s books that could be classified as horror, but The Stone Child definitely fits the bill and is an incredibly readable mix of spookiness and mystery that will draw readers in and keep them guessing until the last page. Poblocki is an expert at creating the perfect unsettling atmosphere for his story that gives readers chills even before any real action has begun. Moreover, the twist that the deadly monsters have seemingly crawled out of horror novels, just like the one readers are holding in their hands, adds an extra spine-tingling level of creepiness that may have them looking over their shoulders more than once.

While there's no official book trailer, here's a great one made by http://booksandliteratureforteens.blogspot.com/:


Read-alike suggestions:

The Nightmarys by Dan Poblocki

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series by Alvin Schwartz

The Last Apprentice series by Joseph Delaney

The Curse of the Wendigo

The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey
published by Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, 2010
448 pages
approximate age level: 12+

Will Henry and Dr. Percival Warthrop are back again with another bone-chilling mystery. Although he studies extraordinary creatures that most would consider to be monsters, Dr. Warthrop considers these monsters to be no more than interesting animals and his research to be very respectable. So, when he finds out that his colleague and former teacher Dr. Von Helrung is about to publish a paper that claims a mythical, magical beast, the Wendigo, is real, Warthrop takes it upon himself to disprove Von Helrung's claims, afraid that they will discredit Monstrumology. But, disproving the Wendigo may be harder than Warthrop first thinks when a fellow monstrumologist and his one-time best friend, John Chandler, goes missing in the Canadian wilderness while hunting the beast. Suddenly finding himself on a grueling chase with his master through the untamed woods in search of Chandler, or what's left of him, twelve year old Will Henry starts to see things that Warthrop can't – strange, unexplainable things that point to one conclusion – the Wendigo is very real, and very, very hungry.

Fans of The Monstrumologist are in for a real treat with The Curse of the Wendigo as the sequel lives up to the expectations of the first novel, and even exceeds them. Wendigo is a taunt thrill ride that's full of the nightmarish situations, scary monsters, and unbridled gore that readers have come to know and love. Yet, Wendigo also greatly expands on Warthrop's character, showing readers there is much more than meets the eye to this seemingly one-dimensional scientist. In fact, the nuanced and subtle way Warthop's character is expanded is so well done, it would not be out of place in a literary adult novel. Some strong ladies also make their debut and hold their own against Will and Warthrop, proving monstrumology isn't just for men. The constant changes in location, thrilling chases, dark mystery, and a new, even more gruesome monster, make The Curse of the Wendigo a hard book to put down, and perfect for teen readers with short attention spans. Hopefully Yancey will soon add a third volume of Will Henry's adventures for us to enjoy.

Read-alike suggestions:

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

The Last Apprentice Series by Joseph Delaney

The Enemy by Charlie Higson

The Monstrumologist

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
published by Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, 2010
464 pages
approximate age level: 12+
Printz Honor Book

12 year old orphan Will Henry is the assistant to Doctor Warthrope, a scientist in a small New England town in the late 1800s. But Will isn't learning about physics or chemistry as his master is a monstrumologist – a studier of monsters. When one night a grave robber stumbles upon the corpse of a hideous beast and brings it to Warthrope, Will finds himself suddenly preparing for a battle that pits the Doctor against a group of Anthropophangi, headless monsters with stomachs full of thousands of razor sharp teeth and a taste for human flesh. But the Anthropophangi have never before been seen in North America, so how have they appeared in the Doctor's town – and why?

The Monstrumologist is a beautifully written horror and mystery that teems with tension and abounds in creepiness. There is enough action to keep those with short attention spans entertained, but Yancey pays plenty of attention to characterization, setting, and language, making this a pleasing read for more discerning readers. Will is a great narrator, and by seeing the events through his eyes we are not only drawn into the story through our attachment to him as a character, but we also share his emotions and reactions – confusion, fear, surprise, terror – making for quite an intense and riveting reading experience. Don't be surprised if the hair stands up on the back of your neck and you find yourself looking over your shoulder more than once while reading. Boys will love the gross-out gory scenes (of which there are plenty), but the eerie mystery is also a big draw that will keep teens turning the pages. Fans will want to follow up with the sequel, The Curse of the Wendigo.

Read-alike suggestions:

The Curse of the Wendigo by Rick Yancey

The Last Apprentice Series by Joseph Delaney

The Enemy by Charlie Higson

The Gates

The Gates by John Connolly
published by Washington Square Press, 2009
304 pages
approximate age level: 12+

Three days before Halloween, 11 year old Samuel Johnson and his faithful sidekick, a dachshund named Boswell, decide to show some initiative and start trick-or-treating early. However, instead of ending up with a bag full of sweets, Samuel instead witnesses his neighbors, the Abernathys, performing a strange ritual that opens a portal to hell and releases a group of demons with one goal – to bring the ultimate evil, The Great Malevolence, onto earth. Helped by a rag-tag team including his two best friends, a confused CERN scientist, and a surprisingly sweet, but incompetent, demon named Nurd, Samuel must, against all odds, save the world.

The Gates is full of quirky characters, hilarious asides, and a bunch of fast-paced, slapstick action that makes for an amusing and engaging read. Though this book is cataloged as Adult Fiction in my library, neither the content nor the language make it inappropriate for recommending to teens and it would be great for booktalking to school classes and reluctant readers as it's a fun roller coaster ride that's easy to sell. John Connolly is also the author of The Book of Lost Things, recipient of the 2007 Alex Award.

Read-alike suggestions:

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly (Alex Award recipient)

Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman (Alex Award recipient)

Stardust by Neil Gaiman (Alex Award recipient)

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (Newbery Award winner)

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Going Bovine by Libba Bray (Printz Award winner)

The Princess Bride by William Goldman