From Publishers Weekly
Fantasist Maguire's novel is set six years after a nuclear war, in a high-tech underground shelter run by an "elected" dictatorship. In shifting points of view, readers learn that three teenagers are the cause of change and growth in this static and fearful society. Sorb is the initiator when, protesting the accidental death of another teen who was a troublemaker, he stops taking his tranquilizers and begins to dream of the outside world. Sorb's belief that there is an outside world draws his friends Ella (a musician) and Mart (a math whiz) into an elaborate plan to unlock the tunnels and set them all free. Helping their cause is renowned singer and activist Mem Dora Prite, whose own stubborn refusal to sing becomes the final factor in Ella's accepting Sorb's need to be free. Their flight to freedom is both exciting and moving. While the transitions between points of view are not always smooth and the ending is a little overwritten, this is still a compelling read. Maguire creates suspenseful action and a bevy of memorable characters. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 8-10-- The inhabitants of Pioneer Colony have spent the last five years in a tedious existence, organized into compounds, ruled by a Council of Elders and harrassed by their own j-guards. These 400 people are 4000 feet underground in a secret facility, a "21st century catacomb," survivors of an atomic attack. In the time they have been underground no one has questioned if Earth is once again safe, or if they should try to tunnel to the surface--no one until three teens, willing to risk death or torture, and encouraged by a former dissenter and singing personality known as Morning Star, begin to question the Council of Elders. The monotonous sterility of the underground setting, the lethargy of its inhabitants, and the regimentation of the colony are chillingly described, contrasting strongly with the inquisitiveness and risk-taking of the teens. Strong characterization offers young adults identity with Ella, Sorb, and Mart, while the shadowiness of the adults heightens their dissimilarity and offers further proof of their lack of caring. Although there are other excellent survival-after-nuclear-holocaust books, such as David Brin's The Postman (1986) or David Palmer's Emergence (1984, both Bantam), this depiction of a barren, underground society is a top choice for young adults. --Pam Spencer, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Fairfax County, Va.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.
