Susan Beth Pfeffer's The Dead and the Gone
The second book in Pfeffer's disaster trilogy is, in some ways, even grimmer than the first. It starts off slowly, since readers of the first one are familiar with the moon-related chaos, but things pick up soon enough as we watch main character Alex struggle to keep his two younger sisters and himself alive when their parents don't return. Devout Catholics, they're helped along by the Church, but even the Church's resources can't save everyone. I find the portrayal of religion in these books interesting; the only church figure in the first book is a total asshole of an evangelical, but the Catholic authorities in this one are pretty cool and their faith is something that helps sustain the characters. Anyway, like I said, these books are grim; I had to take frequent breaks to watch cartoons or play bejeweled. Which, frankly, speaks to the power of the story. And my own sheltered life. A.
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