Book Challenge...

My first book review in this weekend's book challenge is Feed by M.T.Anderson. I hadn't planned on reading it, but a trip to my local Independent bookstore, Chaucer's, changed my mind. This book was on my local SCBWI list serve this month as part of our monthly book discussions. It was through this group's comments that I knew I had to read it. Not my typical kind of book, but I'd heard that it was a good one for teen boys. Got one of those, so thought I'd give it a little test run. (The book, not the teen.)

First off, I don't consider myself a great reviewer of books, I only know what I like and don't like. Having said this, I'm not quite sure if I liked this book or not. Clearly, it was masterfully written. The futuristic setting, the snipped, slang-ridden dialog, the identifiable characters, all made me jealous, that as a writer, I'd never be able to pull this off. But enough about me...M.T. Anderson rules.
I'm amazed at the author's creativity in establishing setting. The World has gone to pot. It barely contains living organisms anymore and American consumerism is at it's peak. Pretty darn bleak. Pretty darn powerful, especially for a teen audience.
Ultimately though, it's a story about teen friendship and the power of peer pressure. That alone made it worthy of ignoring the kids and skipping breakfast.
(300 pages)