Gone

langston_p - This was a really great book, and I am very thankful that I found this series because it is one of the best ones I am reading. What it's about is one day, everybody that was 15 or older just disappears. Everybody 14 or under remained though. Invisible and indestructible walls form preventing them from getting out, and certain kids start developing powers. The kids decided to call this The FAYZ (fallout alley youth zone). Everybody elects Sam, the main character as the leader, but nothing really happens. The kids mostly just looted stores and played video games all day, making it so that no progress at all was made and nothing at all happened. Eventually, another guy named Caine Soren comes along, and changes everything. And this is where the action began. This was an amazing book and it was written really well and had tons of detailed. It was a long book but it was totally worth it reading it.

August 1, 2008
Gr 7 Up-"One minute the teacher was talking about the Civil War. And the next minute he was gone." Just vanishedalong with everyone else over the age of 13 in a 20-mile radius around Perdido Beach, CA. The children left behind find themselves battling hunger, fear, and one another in a novel strongly reminiscent of William Golding's "Lord of the Flies". Things go from bad to worse when some of the children begin exhibiting strange powers, animals show signs of freakish mutations, and people disappear as soon as they turn 14. Though an excellent premise for a novel, "Gone" suffers from a couple of problems. First, it is just too long. After opening with a bang, the initial 200 or so pages limp along before the action begins to really pick up. Secondly, based on the themes of violence, death, and implied sexual intimidation, this is clearly written for an older teen audience who may not appreciate the fact that no one in the book is older than 13. In spite of its faults, "Gone" is a gripping and gritty read with enough creepy gruesomeness to satisfy readers who have a taste for the macabre. Give this one to the readers who aren't quite ready for Stephen King or Dean Koontz."Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK"

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