This Is Not a Drill
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- 5,99 €
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- 5,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
In this harrowing young adult novel, two teens try to save a class of first graders from a gun-wielding soldier suffering from PTSD.
“Fast-paced, suspenseful thriller. . . . The hours-long standoff comes to a dramatic and violent climax. . . . A vividly depicted and gripping tragedy.”—Kirkus Reviews
“A well-imagined and tragic story with surprising characters and an unforgettable climax. It’s hard to believe this was written by a first-time novelist.”—Todd Strasser, author of Give a Boy a Gun
Emery: Teaching French to eighteen first graders? Very cool. Getting partnered with Jake? Now that was just cruel. After what he did, I didn’t even want to speak to him.
Jake: Yeah, I messed things up with Emery, I admit it. But I actually thought this tutoring gig might give me a chance to show her I wasn’t a total jerk.
Emery: And then it happened. So fast. A soldier charged into the room and demanded his son. We couldn’t have known that he’d pull a gun when he was told no. Now we were trapped with him—just me and Jake, with all those kids looking to us to protect them.
Jake: What I saw in this guy’s eyes scared me, but what could I do? One wrong move could send him over the edge. I had to save Emery and the kids. The last thing I wanted was to let her down again. I had to find a way to stop him . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
When high school seniors Emery and Jake sign up to help teach French to a class of first-graders, they have no idea that an ordinary November morning will turn into a hostage situation. Opening at the hospital in the aftermath ("We started class this morning with our lesson on French words for animals," Emery tells readers. "And by the afternoon, three people were dead"), McDowell's debut alternates between Emery and Jake's present-tense narration of the events in the besieged classroom and their memories of their bitter romantic past. The gunman's instability makes for tense and unpredictable reading, but the long sections that revisit Emery and Jake's backstories somewhat diminish the escalating tension. And while certain elements of the story are believable, such as the need to set up a bathroom option for the children and the helplessness Jake and Emery feel, others (like Jake's use of a classroom computer going unnoticed) are harder to buy. Nonetheless, with authentic and distinct narrative voices and a talent for unspooling suspense, McDowell establishes herself as a writer to watch. Ages 12 up.
