Reek

LoveReading4Kids Says

July 2024 Book of the Month | Interest Age 9+ Reading Age 8

Set in a dystopian future in which the earth has become so polluted even the air is toxic, Alastair Chisholm’s thriller, like all the best sci-fi stories, is full of warnings about contemporary society.

Teenage Sparrow has already had to leave school to support her grandfather and little sister. She works as a courier, tearing round Edinburgh at top speed, relying on her hover skates and her bespoke tether to meet the specified delivery times. It’s not just food and rent the family need, oxygen must be paid for too, all supplied by big tech corporation Zephyr.

When Sparrow’s inventor friend discovers a way to purify air easily and cheaply, the obvious next step is to share it with Zephyr’s CEO. Can Sparrow make this potentially world-changing delivery, and who is out to stop her?

The story moves at the same pace as Sparrow weaving through the poisoned streets of Edinburgh, and there are just as many twists and turns before it reaches its breath-taking conclusion. Written for Barrington Stoke to be accessible to all readers, this delivers a big story in just 152 pages and gives readers so much to think about.

Reviewed by Andrea Reece
Andrea Reece has spent almost her entire working life in children’s books, first as publisher, latterly as consultant, project manager and critic.
More reviews by Andrea Reece

About Reek

Climate catastrophe leaves the people of Earth fighting for oxygen in this gripping dystopian thriller from bestselling sci-fi author Alastair Chisholm.

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