But, enough with the announcements. Today's review is for The Water Wars by Cameron Stracher (Dinner with Dad, Double Billing). As usual *SPOILER ALERT*
In The Water Wars, Cameron Stracher creates a post-apocalyptic world where governments hoard the last remaining fresh water on earth, and the rest is desalinated from the oceans or sucked out of clouds. Borders have been redrawn and countries eliminated from the map. The citizens of the earth live off the water the government rations them and what other they can afford. When Vera, a citizen of the new Republic of Illinowa (an area that encompasses the former-day midwest of the United States), watches Kai, dump water into the dusty remains of the ground, she's astounded. But, when Kai tells her that he knows a secret source of fresh water that nobody has to pay for, Vera and her brother Will befriend the boy. When Kai disappears, kidnapped by a greedy desalination corporation bent on controlling all the water of the earth, Vera and Will must team up with water pirates, fight hypocritical environmental agencies, and venture across the North American continent to not only save Kai, but to gain fresh water for the entire world.
Stracher creates a wonderful premise in this young adult novel, but, to me, the book seemed to be lacking something. The character development was not done very well, and although each character could have been very interesting, the quickly-paced book never seemed to have time to explain why characters acted in their ways. Some information was revealed about each of the characters, but not enough to make me really understand what they were going through.
Also, the back story of the entire Water Wars was never completely explained. To my knowledge, water is a renewable resource, so what happened to the abundant flow of fresh water to cause this worldwide drought? Stracher comments on wars of the past and a time called "The Great Panic" but never explained what happened to all the drinkable water. Did pollution ruin it? Did global warming cause it to evaporate? We may never know.
Despite its flaws, The Water Wars, is a wonderfully paced novel. From the opening paragraph to the closing words, you will not want to put this book down. Stracher constantly engages the reader, but never overwhelms them, bringing you to new locations and introducing new characters throughout the entire novel. Be assured that you'll want to know what happens to Kai, Vera, and Will, and will not want to stop until you read the ending.
Very much in the style of Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games, Stracher's book earned a 6.5/10 stars in my opinion.
Gonna add a comment cause it was sadly comment-less lol jk. So it sounds like it would be a really good read. Is it like the hunger Games because of the government oppressing the people? (Yes most likely) Is there any craziness like the games? Or is the craziness them, venturing across America and teaming up with the pirates? And is it one of those obnoxiously fast-paced books where the entire story takes place over a week or is it just lots of action?
ReplyDeleteYes, it's similar to the Hunger Games due to the oppressive government, and the feeling of the book is similar to that of Collins'. There are some dramatic points (that you referred to as "craziness") that add to the story, and the venturing across post-apocalyptic North America helps to add tension. Although the book never specifies completely how long it took for Will and Vera to complete their journey, I think it may be a little bit of both your options. It does take place in a rather short amount of time, but at the same time, lot of action takes place, and the book never seems to die down. For the most part it's always interesting, which, while making it a pretty fast read, also makes a lot of cliches (i.e. "You'll never get away with this" is used in the book, while the antagonist laughs maniacally).
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