Book Review: Sky Jumpers by Peggy Eddleman
Title: Sky Jumpers
Series: Sky Jumpers #1
By: Peggy Eddleman
Author Info: Website | Twitter | Goodreads
Age Group: Middle Grade
Genre Type: Dystopian, Adventure, Action
Publication Date: September 24th 2013
Pages: 288 pages
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Summary:
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.
My Review
Filled with action, adventure, and an exciting setting, SKY JUMPERS by Peggy Eddleman is the perfect reading choice for middle-grade readers. Featuring a daring new young heroine and her best friends, this series is sure to appeal to both girls and boys.
For Hope, it's not easy living in a society of creative inventors, especially when your skills are cliff diving and adventure.
Twelve-year-old Hope lives in White Rock, a post-apocalyptic town which use to be Nebraska. Its valley a huge crater left behind by the green bomb that hit it's plains. The Green Bombs created a deadly side-effect, an invisible band of compressed air known as the Bomb's Breath that now surrounds White Rock protecting it.
Every year the town of White Rock celebrates its accomplishments by hosting Inventions Day where everyone is expected to participate. New inventions and helpful gadgets created are the pride and joy of the celebration. It's a fun competition for young adults to show their creativeness, while trying to help make their community a better place. The only problem is, Hope is not good at inventing, and this year's competition ends up in her worst embarrassment yet.
Frustrated, she much rather sneak off to cliff dive into the Bomb's Breath than fail at yet another invention. But when bandits threaten her family and friends demanding the priceless antibiotics they can make, they must either give up the last of the remaining medicine or make more. The problem is, they have no more ingredients to make them, and only two days before the bandits take action. Suddenly Hope realizes she may be the only one with the right skill and able to save White Rock. Hope, along with her friends Aaren, Brenna, and Brock are about to go on an adventure like no other.
With SKY JUMPERS author Peggy Eddleman has crafted a wonderful story for both boys and girls filled with excitement and adventure, and for parents and teachers a book that touches on such themes as the importance of family and friends, and the ability to work together and accepting each other's unique gifts and strengths. As an adult I was easily captivated by the world of SKY JUMPERS and I'm sure young readers are going to be thrilled with it.
The setting is fascinating, and the author does a nice job of explaining about Green Bombs and how they created the deadly and invisible band of compressed air known as the Bomb's Breath that now surrounds White Rock. There's plenty of action and adventure for readers with threatening bandits, daring escapes, cliff dives and deadly blizzards. Told from twelve-year-old Hope’s point of view, this daring and sweet new heroine will be easy for young readers to relate to as she struggles to fit in and find her own special skill.
My Rating: 4 Stars. I really Like it.
Recommended for middle grade readers looking to venture beyond chapter books. The action, adventure and writing style all make SKY JUMPERS a fast and page-turning read. For Parents SKY JUMPERS is a fun and enjoyable book to read aloud with your children
PLEASE NOTE: A courtesy review copy of this book was provided by Random House for Young Readers via NetGalley in exchange for my fair review. Thank you Random House for Young Readers for the review opportunity!
