Dead Water Zone [Paperback]

Ken Oppel (Author)

Book Description

A novel for young adults

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Plenty of action, a pinch of romance and such up-to-date topics as pollution and computer-hacking speed along this futuristic thriller. In search of his runaway younger brother, athletic Paul leaves his tidy suburban home to plunge into the murky slum called Watertown. Various events lead Paul to believe that his missing brother is caught in something very strange indeed, something that has to do with the potent waters surrounding the shantytown. Watertown proves a magnificently eerie setting--so much so that it tends to upstage the novel's plot and its characters, both of which seem rather thin and unoriginal in comparison. Although it does not offer readers challenges on a level with those found in, say, Peter Dickinson's Eva , this fast-paced adventure contains plenty to enjoy. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

A well-realized world of rotting docks and ramshackle buildings on the shore of a polluted lake forms the setting for this haunting character study. Summoned by his brilliant but frail brother Sam, Paul leaves his comfortable suburban neighborhood for unsavory Watertown--and finds that both he and his brother are being hunted by the quasi-legal Cityweb: Sam has discovered a mutated microorganism in the lake that, though eventually toxic, greatly enhances physical ability. But despite plenty of danger, narrow scrapes, and a lurid, violent climax, outward events seem almost incidental compared to Paul's inner struggles. Once complacent in his role as protective older brother, he's angry to see Sam growing up and away from him and racked by guilt to feel so; his turmoil increases when he meets a new Sam--preternaturally fast and strong, exultantly freed from his former metabolic disorder. Oppel explores the brothers' dependent love-hate relationship with some sensitivity, though the confessional tone gets heavy at times. Glamorous but deadly, the microorganism is like a drug, so the story can be read on that level, too; indeed, Oppel adds a subplot involving a streetwise young Watertowner searching for her lake water-addicted mother. A thoughtful story with an unusual combination of ingredients. (Fiction. 12+) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 170 pages
• Publisher: Kids Can Press (1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155074092X
• ISBN-13: 978-1550740929
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,853,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kenneth Oppel is the author of numerous books for young readers. His award-winning Silverwing trilogy has sold over a million copies worldwide, and been adapted as an animated TV series and stage play. Airborn was winner of a Michael L Printz Honor Book Award, and the Canadian Governor General's Award for Children's Literature; its sequel, Skybreaker, was a New York Times bestseller and was named Children's Novel of the Year by the London Times. His most recent book is HALF BROTHER. Born on Vancouver Island, he has lived in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, England, Ireland, and now lives in Toronto with his wife and children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, August 29, 2008

By 

The Framer (Spokane, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Water Zone (Mass Market Paperback)

I found this book to be yet another highly enjoyable book by Kenneth Oppel. It is a quick read, but I found that this did not at all deter from my enjoyment of the book. I can recommend this book to anyone, especially fans of other books by Kenneth Oppel.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book I recomend you get it, December 14, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Missouri, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dead Water Zone (Hardcover)

I'm 14 and I have to read for school you have to get a certin amount of points to gaduate. I hate reading but after I read this book I love reading. So I recomend you get this book or Journy to the center of the Earth

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not the author's best work, September 5, 2006

By 

Marie Anderson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dead Water Zone (Hardcover)

I bought this book because I loved and adored Oppel's novel Airborn. Unfortunately, this much earlier work is not nearly so well-written. The imagery was pretty darn nifty, and the premise was moderately intriguing, but unfortunately that's really all it had going for it. The characters were uniformly static and the plot was generic. Try something more recent of Oppel's.