Book Review: The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan

The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Publication date: March 2011
ISBN: 9780385738590
Source: Library

 

Annah has grown up in the Dark City, every day reliving the memory of leaving her twin sister behind in the Forest of Hands and Teeth.  And then the more recent memory of Elias leaving her behind.  When both her sister and Elias return unexpectedly, she is thrown into a world of swirling emotions.  But she doesn't have much time to worry about them or about the new boy Catcher who makes her feel so different, because everything about her world is about to change.

Things I Liked:
I really love these books because of their balanced look at zombie action and humane reactions.  I love how it challenges what you think and expect about zombies and how you will look sympathetically perhaps to their plight as well as the human plight.  I became wrapped up in the reality of Annah and Gabry and Elias and Catcher, who struggle to survive in an ever shrinking world of thinking humans.  It was such a realistic view of how it would feel to watch the human race disappear a piece at a time and then to see the different reactions survivors have.  I just love the heart and soul of this series and the tough and sympathetic characters Ryan creates.  Great series!

Things I Didn't Like:
It dragged for a while in the middle.  Not much seemed to happen while they were trapped on the island for most of the chapters.  Things definitely picked up near the end and were exciting for much of the beginning, but there is a bit of a slow spot right in the middle.  And the ending is a bit of a stretch too.  Still, I never wanted to stop reading it.

Read-alikes:
Read The Forest of Hands and Teeth and The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan first
Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !@
some, not a lot

mrg-factor: X
a few incidents, but nothing explicit

v-factor: ->->
quite a bit, what with zombies and all

Overall rating: ****

Is there a book or series that almost makes you believe in zombies?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

The Dead-Tossed Waves are a natural part of Gabry's life.  Living in the lighthouse at the edge of Vista, Gabry and her mother lead relatively quiet lives, as quiet as anything can be after the Return.  When Gabry makes a fateful decision one night, she little realizes how much a life can change in just one moment.  Will Gabry find the strength to follow her mother into the forest to save those she loves? 

Things I Liked:
When the action picked up, I was sucked into it.  I kept reading into the night, biting my nails as I worried about the characters I came to love.  This is probably the only zombie series I've ever been able to read and enjoy and I think it is because of its compassionate viewpoint on the undead.  I thought it was so interesting that Ryan has her characters think about the zombies' personalities and humanity.  She doesn't just use zombies for their gory, violent scream-factor.  They were humans once and the characters face the anguish involved in seeing people they love turn against them and their personalities seem to disappear.  It was intriguing and also action-packed.  And it left me hungering for another book in the series!  Thought-provoking quotes:

What use are experiences if we're not allowed to remember them?  If we forget in order to avoid the pain of loss?  What is the point of living if we have to always insulate ourselves? p 61

I don't want to hear his argument, don't want to think that there's any way I could be wrong.  If there's anything in this world that's clear - that is black-and-white - it's that the Mudo are dead.  There's nothing left of who they used to be.
Elias stands and walks over to me.  "I just don't know if it can be that easy," he says. p 220-221

Things I Didn't Like:
I really struggled with the beginning of the book.  I could not stand Gabry - she seemed like a melodramatic, uncertain baby.  Every reaction she had to anything was like the end of the world.  She changed over the course of the book, thank heavens, and I like how she stopped thinking so poorly of herself as well.  There were a lot of plots and threads introduced in this book that aren't resolved and I am hoping they are not left up in the air.

Read-alikes:
Read The Forest of Hands and Teeth first
Reminded me of The Giver and Messenger by Lois Lowry

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
some, not a lot

mrg-factor: X
implied, but not described

v-factor: ->->->->
What do you expect?  There are zombies!

Overall rating: ****

Do you like zombie books or do you avoid them?

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teethis all Mary has ever known - it appears to only hold hordes of unconsecrated; there is nothing outside of her village. This is what Mary and her family and friends have always been taught by the Sisterhood. Mary, however, clings to a dream of something more - a beautiful place her mother told her of outside of her isolated world.

This book had a lot more depth and thought than I expected. On the surface it just appeared to be an apocalyptic horror tale about zombies. But really, it was so much more - an exploration of Mary's feelings and desires, of dealing with grief, of testing boundaries. I loved this story for its dystopian world, for Mary and her complex feelings and experiences, and for the action-packed adventure. What I wished the book had was more explanation, more answers, and just more story. I hope Ryan creates another book from this world - I am dying to learn more.

Read-alikes:
Had me thinking about Lois Lowry's dystopian books beginning with The Giver- I've got to reread it now!
Reminded me of a darker version of City of Ember by Jeanne Duprau
A little like Unwind by Neal Shusterman

RATINGS:
s-factor: !
There might have been a very few.

mrg-factor: X
A few situations, but action was always off-stage.

v-factor: ->->->
The zombie fighting and killing was a little gross, but not overwhelmingly so.

Overall rating: ****