Book Blurb
What happens when you can’t do the one thing that matters most?
12-year-old Hope lives in White Rock, a town struggling to recover from the green bombs of World War III. The bombs destroyed almost everything that came before, so the skill that matters most in White Rock—sometimes it feels like the only thing that matters—is the ability to invent so that the world can regain some of what it’s lost.
But Hope is terrible at inventing and would much rather sneak off to cliff dive into the Bomb’s Breath—the deadly band of air that covers the crater the town lives in—than fail at yet another invention.
When bandits discover that White Rock has invented priceless antibiotics, they invade. The town must choose whether to hand over the medicine and die from disease in the coming months or to die fighting the bandits now. Hope and her friends, Aaren and Brock, might be the only ones who can escape through the Bomb’s Breath and make the dangerous trek over the snow-covered mountain to get help.
For once, inventing isn’t the answer, but the daring and risk-taking that usually gets Hope into trouble might just save them all.
Toot's Review by Stacy Sabala
The story is told from the point of view of Hope Toriella who is twelve. She lives in White Rock with her parents. The world she lives in has no technology which was wiped out during the war. Their survival depends on the inventions that the people of White Rock can come up with. There is a huge celebration every year to encourage everyone to come up with a wonderful invention to make life easier. Hope struggles in making inventions. Even though she tries her hardest, it never works out the way she wants it to. She is one who pushes herself physically and isn’t afraid to take a risk. She and her friend Aaren have learned to sky jump. They jump from a cliff and fall right through the Bomb’s Breath. Of course, it is a secret when they sky jump or their parents wouldn’t let them do it. The Bomb’s breath has caused many deaths over the years since the war so the town’s people tend to stay far away from it. They do use it for their protection from the outside world. It keeps the bandits away that attack other towns.
However, after the fall festival, bandits find their way into White Rock. They want the antibiotics that the town has. They invade the town and take it over threatening to kill people to get what they want. They shoot Hope’s father in the leg to make their point. Infection spreads from the wound. He needs the antibiotic that the bandits are demanding. The town needs help. They loaned their guard to another town to keep them safe. Now someone needs to escape and go get the guard to help. Hope and her friends are the only ones who can do it. They escape from the school and need to make their way over the mountain to find their guard. The trip is dangerous and they have limited time. Hope’s dad isn’t doing well and he needs the medicine before it is too late. The guard of White Rock is their only hope.
This was an interesting book. The place that the author created was a step back in time, even though it occurred in the future. It gets the reader thinking what life could be like. Hope is an interesting character. She tries hard but doesn’t excel in what the town deems important. So she doesn’t think about her self in a positive light. She considers herself a failure. When the town comes under siege, she shows how strong and imaginative she really is. This is a great book to show readers that it is ok to be yourself and excel at things that are different from others.
I give it a 4 out of 5
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