Reviews by Tag: survival

Matt Damon plays Mark Watney in Ridley Scott’s science fiction film, The Martian, made in 2015. Mark is abandoned on Mars after a big storm comes through the crew’s camp. His fellow astronauts including Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain) and Chris Beck (Sebastian Stan), escape Mars safely, but leave him behind after coming to the conclusion that he had died due to debris. Mark makes contact with the crew and with NASA back on Earth and communicates with them to try and get him off the barren planet.

The Bridge Home by Padma Venkatraman is a devastatingly realistic look into the life of a homeless child. It tells a realistic story of abuse and homelessness, and yet also is a story of hope. The book is set in India, and follows the two main characters, young girls named Viji and Rukku as they run away from their abusive household and live alone on the streets. They meet other characters and try to survive the harsh life.

Twelve-year-old Torak’s life is suddenly turned upside down when a bear attack suddenly leaves Torak without his father. Now, Torak is faced with completing the oath that he promised his father he would complete: To find a mountain that nobody has ever found, to solve a riddle that nobody has ever solved, and to kill the bear that killed his father. Luckily, Torak has a guide, in the form of a wolf cub. Together, Torak and Wolf travel together, avoiding enemies, collecting pieces of the riddle, and finding a way to make it to the mountain.

The story of Dune begins with Paul Atriedes, son of the Duke Leto. Leto is assigned to govern over the hostile desert world of Arrakis, the only source of melange. This “spice” is highly coveted, as consumption of it can cause, most notably, heightened mental abilities and limited foresight. However, the Duke’s acclimation of the planet was planned so that the Atriedes family might be left vulnerable. Paul must learn to navigate the new worlds of Arrakis and interplanetary politics, or his family will not survive.

Dry is about Alyssa and Garret, whose lives completely alter after the drought. Alyssa and Garret are siblings who live in California with their parents and uncle. Suddenly, the water supply is gone. Therefore, families turn against each other, striving for water. Her parents are gone, and her brother and her lives are threatened.  Can Alyssa fix the problem with the help of her neighbor, Kelton?

Based on a true story, Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O’Dell, focuses on the main character Karana who enjoys life on an island with her tribe in the middle of a sea of dolphins. One day, Russians unexpectedly raid her island and attempt to make a deal to share the supply of fish equally with the islanders.

Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel which focuses on a group of British schoolboys who are stranded on a remote island. They start off with rules and a form of government, but their situation quickly turns chaotic and savage. They split into two groups, one more civilized and attempting to follow a basic moral code under the leadership of Ralph, and the other wild hunters under the control of Jack. These two groups clash with each other and this results in more than one death.

Beauty Queens follows a simple concept: what if a plane full of beauty queens crash-landed on a deserted island, a la Lord of the Flies?

Except it’s not quite so simple as that. This is the story of the survivors, fourteen typical (and atypical) beauty queens who must work together to stay alive and keep their pageant skills sharp until help arrives.

This book had an incredible story line, and it kept me wanting to read. There were lots of elements to the novel like mystery, love, and humor which made it even more enjoyable. The characters were easy to relate to and very intriguing. I had the same sense of desire that Kira did throughout the book- I wanted to know why things happened, and what about her past led her to her current situation just as much as Kira did. I thought the cover went well with the book because it ties into elements of the novel. It has the same mysterious tone that the book does which translates well.