Alone

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Synopsis:

“Perfect for fans of Hatchet and the I Survived series, this harrowing middle grade debut novel-in-verse from a Pushcart Prize–nominated poet tells the story of a young girl who wakes up one day to find herself utterly alone in her small Colorado town.

When twelve-year-old Maddie hatches a scheme for a secret sleepover with her two best friends, she ends up waking up to a nightmare. She’s alone—left behind in a town that has been mysteriously evacuated and abandoned.

With no one to rely on, no power, and no working phone lines or internet access, Maddie slowly learns to survive on her own. Her only companions are a Rottweiler named George and all the books she can read. After a rough start, Maddie learns to trust her own ingenuity and invents clever ways to survive in a place that has been deserted and forgotten.

As months pass, she escapes natural disasters, looters, and wild animals. But Maddie’s most formidable enemy is the crushing loneliness she faces every day. Can Maddie’s stubborn will to survive carry her through the most frightening experience of her life?”

Review:

I liked this story of survival because it’s very different from what we typically see for this age group. Usually, it’s the story of a kid who ends up lost in the wilderness all alone and must make camp after some sort of accident or incident. Rather, Maddie doesn’t actually go anywhere, it’s just the opposite which gives her an upper hand in some ways, but also affects her emotionally in others.

Throughout the story, Maddie must come to terms with breaking into neighbors’ homes, stealing, and vandalizing in order to survive. This story arc was, again, really interesting for me because it made the character feel so much more alive. When you’re surviving the wilderness, you’re not having to think about the ramifications of what you’re doing in the same way – it’s strictly survival. But, in Maddie’s case – she has to break windows, steal from stores, and scavenge the houses in her community for the things she needs. It brings a whole other level to her act of survival. It’s especially so because she believes the townspeople could return at any time.

What I really liked in this story is that Maddie doesn’t only deal with the actual act of survival – finding clean water, enough food, shelter. But that she also deals with the mental and emotional stress of being lonely. I think that by writing this story in verse, the author was able to capture those feelings of loneliness at a very intimate level and it worked really well for the story.

Verdict:

This story keeps moving with the sheer act of survival that keeps you turning the pages. I loved the level of suspense. Novels in verse always amaze me with how much story they can tell in so few words. I really was invested in Maddie’s story and wanted to see what would happen in the end. I don’t want to give anything away, but the ending is worth it!

If you have kids in your life looking for a survival story that’s a little different, this is a book to hand them. This story would also be great for reluctant readers – novels in verse are always less scary because there’s so much more white space.

This could also make a really great discussion book for a book club. The publisher has created a reading group guide to get you started!

If you’re interested in purchasing Alone by Megan E. Freeman, please use my affiliate links for Amazon.com or Bookshop.org. When you purchase from either of these links, I will earn a commission as an affiliate.

Need to Know:

Title: Alone
Author: Megan E. Freeman
Publisher: Aladdin
Publication Date: January 12, 2021
Page Number: 416 pgs.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.