R E K. (bigstone) - , reviewed on 6/14/2019 + 1452 more book reviews

This novel by Chris Bohjalian expresses the thoughts and emotions of a teenager whose parents are killed in a nuclear plant meltdown. As I read I found myself wondering how the author could get so inside the heart of a teenage girl. In his acknowlegments he thanked his daughter who was an incredible help with the character so that language and emotions would be true to the age.

The book is sad in so many ways. Her father was an engineer in charge of the plant when excessive rain brought events to a head. Of course, I emphasized with Emily whose life was torn apart by her parents loss and the blame placed on her father for the accident. People even believed that Emily herself and her mother were at fault. No wonder Emily ran away. No wonder she returned to her contaminated home exposing herself to the radiation caused by the accident.

At points I found myself hoping that things would get better and better for Emily. It took a long, long time but she found her dog, Maggie, and was living in the meltdown zone when she was discovered. My only regret is that I would like to have seen the author explore Emily's life afte discovery in more depth.

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