Acceleration (Edgar Allen Poe Awards. Best Young Adult (Awards)) (Hardcover)

by Graham McNamee (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 8 Up-Seventeen-year-old Duncan is haunted by the fact that he was unable to save a drowning girl a few yards away one fateful afternoon the previous September. This summer he has a job working underground at the Toronto subway lost and found where he uncovers, amid the piles of forgotten junk, an opportunity to exorcise his own guilty demons. When business is slow, Duncan spends his time rummaging through dusty shelves and boxes of unclaimed items. During one of these sessions, he uncovers a strange, leather-bound book that turns out to be the diary of a would-be serial killer. Unable to tear himself from the gory descriptions of tortured animals and arson, he discovers that the writer has started to stalk women on the subway. When the police seem disinterested, the teen takes matters into his own hands, and with the aid of his two best friends, tries to track and trap the murderer before he can strike. This chilling page-turner is all thrills, and the author cleverly manipulates readers' sense of disbelief by eliminating the possibility of police help or parental understanding. What results is one teen's self-conscious yet fast-paced journey into the mind of a cold-blooded killer, and the resulting manhunt will keep readers on the edge of their seats.
Hillias J. Martin, New York Public Library
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 9-12. "Acceleration: escalation of increasingly destructive aberrant behavior," the stuff that serial killers are made of. That's what teenage Duncan finds out after he begins investigating a shocking journal that turns up in the Toronto subway lost-and-found where he works. When the police refuse to take it seriously, Duncan enlists the aid of two very different friends to help him find out the identity of the diary's author, who has apparently graduated from eviscerating animals and setting fires to tracking human prey. McNamee smoothly integrates snapshots from Duncan's escapades with a new buddy and his wild best friend, who lives teetering on the edge of the law, with information plucked from the diary. He never overexploits the sensational potential of the subject and builds suspense layer upon layer, while injecting some surprising comedy relief that springs from the boys' friendship. Less convincing is Duncan's guilt for a death not of his making, which is presented as the raison d'etre for his need to find the sick killer. Characters are more than stereotypes here, though it's the mystery and the boys' repartee that give the novel its page-turning punch. Stephanie Zvirin
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (October 14, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385731191
• ISBN-13: 978-0385731195
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #570,731 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Accelerate Your Heart Rate, September 2, 2004

By	Jarrod T Thompson "Young Adult Author" (Junction City, KS) - See all my reviews

Acceleration is a wonderfully written suspense novel. This book actually got my heart rate up. Finding out what acceleration means is an interesting part of this novel.

Some who are critical of this novel must not have read all of it because all of the preliminary facts and details suck the reader into the world of the main character, Duncan. By the time you realize you are totally immersed in the cold, dark, murky existence of Duncan and his nightmares, you are hooked.

McNamee does a tremendous job with the setup, which makes the climax a thrilling peak to the intriguing story of a lost soul who finds himself depressed by his recent past, and looking for a way to make up for mistakes he feels so much responsibility for.

The main character, Duncan, gets himself in WAY over his head and nearly drowns himself in a world of terror and PURE FEAR and adrenaline that moves this novel to a perfect conclusion.

Whatever the author did, he did it right because I forgot where I was and actually became immersed in the world that exists in the novel. I FELT the fear and the adrenaline rush that leads to the book's climax and resolution.

Fantastic book!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very suspensful young adult novel!, May 23, 2006

By	A. Wilhelm (Ohio) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Acceleration, by Graham McNamee is a great book for teens. The book really pulls the reader into the story and holds the reader's attention to the very end! Full of mystery, suspense, and wit, this book is great for any young adult looking for a good read!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You will get a boost of ACCELERATION with this book!, April 15, 2005

A Kid's Review

Imagine this: you're looking around for something to read when you find this little brown book that turns out to be a diary. Inside you find the dirty and sick writings of an unknown writer. That's what happens to 14 year old Duncan in the book Acceleration written by Graham McNamee.

Duncan is a normal, average teenager living in Toronto, a place known as the Jungle. He also works a normal job every day, but it's the subway lost and found, which he calls the Dungeon. There is no air or sunlight, so you can imagine what he's going through. While trying to pass the endless hours of his shift, he finds a little brown book that was turned in ten days ago. But that little brown book isn't just an average book, it's the diary of a crazy serial killer, who Duncan calls Roach. Roach has drowned mice, hung cats, started numerous fires, and is now "hunting" three women and planning to kill them. Duncan knows its up to him to put the pieces of this puzzle together, think like a serial killer thinks, find and stop this killer before he strikes and it's too late.

I really liked the book Acceleration because of its fast-paced action and feeling of the clock ticking and time running out. If you like realistic fiction books with lots of suspense and action, Acceleration is the book for you! This book will make you stay at the edge of your seat throughout the entire story.