May 13, 2013
This fun read from Kizer (the Meridian trilogy) pushes it with a few plot points but still results in an exciting apocalyptic road trip. A few months ago, Nadia and Rabbit’s military doctor uncle, Bean, visited them and insisted on injecting them with a vaccine for a “new bug.” Not long afterward, the disease XRD TB—nicknamed “BluStar” after its physical side effects—starts ravaging the world, and 16-year-old Nadia and 11-year-old Rabbit are the only survivors in their entire town. With the assorted survival gear their uncle ordered for them, they attempt to make their way from their Seattle suburb to their grandfather in West Virginia. They meet a handful of survivors on the way, most notably a teen from Los Angeles named Zack, and also adopt a pair of animals. Most of their journey is Post-Apocalypse 101—being disgusted by corpses, looting dark buildings, learning other survivors might rob them—and the experimental cure/survivalist setup is a tad forced, but, on the whole, Kizer’s story is solidly told. Ages 12–up. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio.