Icebreaker

May 11, 2015
Tanner (the Keepers trilogy) offers an unusual take on the post-apocalyptic genre with this chilly tale of life board a massive ship that has been traversing the frozen seas for three centuries, ever since the Anti-Machinist movement caused the collapse of society. Having long forgotten their original purpose, the residents of the icebreaker Oyster have separated into three tribes that exist in an uneasy state of low-level conflict. Bullied and shunned, 13-year-old Petrel belongs to no tribe, but when the Oyster finds a mysterious boy stranded on an iceberg, she helps to protect him; they become unlikely allies as the ship descends into chaos and open warfare. Tanner’s portrayal of a culture that has lost its way, as well as conflicts between science and faith, provides a complex, thought-provoking backdrop to Petrel’s tale of self-reliance and Fin’s crisis of loyalties. These interior journeys are just one part of a fast-paced adventure featuring talking rats, a rusting mazelike setting, and growing tension, which leaves things wide open for the next installment of the Hidden trilogy. Ages 9–12. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management.

Starred review from May 15, 2015
Scientists hide a secret aboard a ship headed for the farthest reaches of the Earth in the hopes of saving a remnant of modern technology and knowledge from the Anti-Machinists, a group of zealots determined to throw the world into another Dark Age. The crew of the Oyster is entrusted with guarding the hidden treasure until the crisis is over. But after 300 years and a shipboard civil war that has destroyed all record of their original mission, the only memory of their charge is a vague hope that a sleeping captain will awake and save them when their need is great. Time and war have divided the crew into reluctantly interdependent factions, but the 12-year-old orphan Petrel belongs to no tribe. When she sees a boy stranded on the ice, her loneliness prompts her to seek his rescue. Unfortunately the boy is not the innocent he seems. This new trilogy will bait readers with its intriguing premise, hook them with its starkly beautiful setting, and reel them in with its fascinating characters. While others look toward the revival of technology to save them, Petrel's humanity in the face of brutal ideology makes her the perfect heroine. Two talking ship's rats make splendid companions for Petrel; Tanner's knack with vivid names and textured dialect help to complete the intriguing worldbuilding. An artfully crafted adventure that's equal parts thought-provoking and thrilling. (character list) (Science fiction. 9-12)

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Starred review from June 1, 2015

Gr 5-8-Come aboard the Oyster, a ship that has been sailing a frozen ocean for 300 years. Its mission is to survive the global reign of the Anti-Machinists who have destroyed everything mechanical and all knowledge that goes along with it. Life on the vagabond ship has evolved into a tense society of tribes separated by job function but united against the outside world. Only 12-year-old Petrel, dismissed as "Nothing Girl," doesn't fit in anywhere and has only two talking rats, Mister Smoke and Missus Slink, as friends. When a boy found on an ice floe is taken on board, his suspicious presence upsets the crew, but Petrel is determined to protect the stranger, whom she names Fin. But it's no accident that Fin was found there. Can he be trusted? And who is the Oyster's "sleeping captain"? A carefully structured plot foreshadows the dramatic climax and reveals secrets at just the right time, keeping readers engaged throughout. Tanner's evocative prose allows readers to feel every dark, noisy crevice of the ship as well as the chill of the frozen wasteland that surrounds it. Unique, fully realized characters add cross-gender appeal. VERDICT Tanner, author of the "Keepers" series (Delacorte), has created a strong start to a new trilogy that will have readers eagerly awaiting the next installment.-Marybeth Kozikowski, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY

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