Pandemic

by Yvonne Ventresca

[shannonmiz]

So, perhaps reading this at the same time that there is a worldwide Ebola outbreak isn't the best plan? It is seriously eerie how easily this book could be real. To be fair, I am no scientist and I don't know how outbreaks of junk actually go down. But it feels like this could be completely real so let's just go with that.

I liked quite a bit about this book. Namely, the story itself. I am quite a fan of disaster scenario books, and I am always intrigued by stories of survival and such. This book was so realistic. I could most definitely see something like this happening, and the thought is terrifying. Now, imagine you're a teen, and alone, and scared.

This would be me, totally freaking out. Obviously.
So, Lil's parents have gone away. Her mom is in Hong Kong, and her dad gets called away to Delaware when the very first people get sick in Maryland. Lil's stuck alone in New Jersey with only a few friends and neighbors around. I think her reactions to being alone are pretty spot-on: she's scared out of her mind, completely paranoid, and starts hoarding ALL the supplies.

But of course, things start to go bad quickly. People in Lil's town get sick, and basically all hell starts to break loose. Eventually, the system starts to break down. People are sick and dying, so pretty much all aspects of everyday life start to fail. Supplies start to run out, hospitals are overloaded, looters are rampant, communications are spotty. I think this is a very realistic portrayal. In other books of this genre, "normal" life screeches to a halt, and I don't think that is what would happen. The conditions the author presented make far more sense. Things begin to disintegrate piece by piece, as people start to become more panicked, desperate, and yes, sick.

Lil's character is definitely likeable. There is "the incident" that she experienced which has distanced her from quite a few friends and an ex-boyfriend, and has basically just been eating at her for months. So not only is she scared about her friends and family, her own health, and the dire situation she's in, she is also still struggling with a lot of ramifications from months before. In truth, I liked that she was still spending some time focusing on her issues, relationships, and problems from before the Blue Flu. Obviously, the flu is her biggest concern most of the time, but I think it is important to show that her life is still going on, because I feel like that is what would actually happen.

Lil also struggled with a lot of moral decisions throughout the book too, like whether to help others or worry about her own survival, among other things that I won't talk about because, you know, spoilers. I liked that she struggled with these things, because as humans, we are kind of wired to put our own needs first, and if she hadn't even considered the selfish alternatives, I wouldn't have believed it.

There is some romance, but the romance is definitely not the main focus, and definitely not insta-love. There is a very strange sort of triangle/square/quadrangle (depending on who we are considering as being "involved") but it isn't super angsty or anything so it didn't bother me.

So, what is making me dock a star and a half, you ask? The feels. Or rather, the lack of feels. Usually in a book, when characters start dropping like flies, I am pretty upset. But I just felt kind of apathetic. Even when Lil would get upset about something, I didn't quite feel it. Yes, I read it, I knew what was happening, but I didn't get the emotion behind it. As a reader, I think that feeling and emotion in a book, especially a book about a global illness, is kind of necessary.

I did enjoy the story and the characters immensely though. The book had a good flow and a good story, and I read it quite quickly because I was eager to know what happened next. Definitely one to pick up if you enjoy survival and suspense in a realistic setting!