By Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Overview: Wow wow wow. This book was insanely good. I’ve learned to expect that from Neal Shusterman, and I would definitely recommend checking out some of his other books too. The premise was interesting and captivating, and I really enjoyed the way the story progressed. I think anyone grades six and up would enjoy this book. It is a definitely a higher reading level, and it definitely gives you a lot to think about, but the content is relatively tame. There is a lot of death described and some bad words, but other than that it’s okay.

What’s it about? In California, the drought situation had been escalating for a while. One day, the water completely runs out. Almost immediately, Alyssa’s state becomes a war zone, where people would do horrible things just for a drop of water. This book looks into human nature and what happens when a life-giving resource runs out.

My thoughts: One common thread I’ve noticed with Neal Shusterman’s books is that they are all, for lack of a better word, deep. They really make you think about a lot of stuff you wouldn’t have thought about otherwise. While it does explore a lot about human decency and such, there were also a lot of funny bits interspersed. The characters are interesting and three dimensional. Not only was this book entertaining, but it also helped me to learn a few things while having fun. Neal Shusterman did a really good job on this one, and I know you’ll agree!