Audible Book Review: Burning Nation: Book 2 of Divided We Fall by Trent Reedy

Chilling, scary and sad. This is an intense sequel from my own Audible credits (2016).

Burning Nation: Book 2 of Divided We Fall
Written by: Trent Reedy
Narrated by: Andrew Eiden


Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
Series: Divided We Fall, Book 2
Unabridged Audiobook
Release Date:06-09-15
Publisher: Scholastic Audio
Genre: Sci Fi, Fantasy, YA
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
In this wrenching sequel to Divided We Fall, Danny and friends fight to defend Idaho against a federal takeover and the ravages of a Burning Nation. At the end of Divided We Fall, Danny Wright's beloved Idaho had been invaded by the federal government, their electricity shut off, their rights suspended. Danny goes into hiding with his friends in order to remain free. But after the state declares itself a Republic, Idaho rises to fight in a second American civil war, and Danny is right in the center of the action, running guerrilla missions with his fellow soldiers to break the federal occupation. Yet what at first seems like a straightforward battle against governmental repression quickly grows more complicated, as more states secede, more people die, and Danny discovers the true nature of some of his new allies.
Chilling, powerful, and all too plausible, Burning Nation confirms Trent Reedy's place as a provocative new voice in YA fiction.
©2015 Trent Reedy (P)2015 Scholastic Inc.

Review:
Danny and his friends are on the run and hiding from the federal government. The Idaho governor and officials have declared Idaho an independent Republic, plunging the state into a civil war. Danny’s small community of Freedom Lake has been occupied by federal troops making it even harder to get food and supplies. After a time of sitting in a bunker hiding, the crew decides to begin covert guerrilla attacks.

Danny unfortunately gets his friend Becca involved and then his own girlfriend, JoBell, gets injured when another rebel group steps in to challenge the feds. Danny isn’t sure who this other group is although there has been some buzz on the radio. Eventually the rebel groups bring Danny and his friends into their camp but Danny isn’t sure he agrees with all of their methods.

Meanwhile matters become more complicated politically as other states secede and the federal forces are spread over more fronts. Soon the awful dilemma is brought to the forefront when state troops have to meet neighbors who may be in the federal troops.

As in any civil war situation there is much to be sad about in this book. Danny and his friends are very young and will no longer have a normal high school or college life. Friends will end up on opposing sides and even enemies might be secret friends or vice versa. Although the story focuses on the local group there are larger issues covered as well. The good and bad of war and the divisions of ideology are awful to contemplate. Many of the characters are just teens so they are impulsive which I find difficult to deal with even though it is certainly realistic. I like the social media reports that are added to bring in news bits.

There is plenty of action to keep the story moving quickly. There is violence of course and some foul language. This book brings Danny to a new crisis and it is clear there is more to come. There is a final book in the trilogy but it is not available on audio yet. Although I found this engaging I am not sure why it is getting such high ratings. Perhaps I didn't embrace it as much because I cringe at the youth and the losses… which means the realism is high… so maybe it deserves some high ratings.

Audio Notes: Andrew Eiden does a very good job with the narration and emotions. Additionally, there is a nature presentation of news blurbs that greatly enhances the book experience for me. I will definitely wait for the Audible version of the final book.

This is an intense sequel I picked up with Audible credits this year. It does qualify for my Audio Challenge.

Audio Book Review: Divided We Fall by Trent Reedy

I found this interesting for its political presentation through an engaging protagonist.

Divided We Fall

Written by: Trent Reedy

Narrated by: Andrew Eiden

Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins 

Unabridged Audiobook

Release Date:05-13-14

Publisher: Scholastic Audio

Genre: Sci Fi, YA

My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 

Publisher's Summary
From the author of Words in the Dust: an action packed YA novel set in a frighteningly plausible near future, about what happens when the States are no longer United.
Danny Wright never thought he'd be the man to bring down the United States of America. In fact, he enrolled in the National Guard because he wanted to serve his country the way his father did. When the Guard is called up on the governor's orders to police a protest in Boise, it seems like a routine crowd control mission... but then Danny's gun misfires, spooking the other soldiers and the already fractious crowd. By the time the smoke clears, 12 people are dead. The president wants the soldiers arrested. The governor swears to protect them. And as tensions build on both sides, the conflict slowly escalates toward the unthinkable: a second American civil war.
With political questions that are popular in American culture yet rare in YA fiction, and a plot that's both excitingly provocative and frighteningly plausible, Divided We Fall will be Trent Reedy's very timely YA debut.
©2014 Trent Reedy (P)2014 Scholastic Inc.

Review:
Danny Wright is a seventeen year old who joined the Idaho National Guard to serve his country as his father did. Danny lives with, and helps to calm, his mother who struggles with an anxiety disorder. Danny did his summer basic training and returned to school expecting to finish out his senior year with his long time girl friend and his school buddies.

The President institutes a mandated ID registration for all US citizens. Idaho’s governor disagrees with the plan and refuses to implement or enforce it. Danny never expected to get called up to real action but his unit is pulled in to assist in quieting a protest riot in Boise. The crowd doesn’t back off and when a rock hits Danny’s gas mask his gun accidentally goes off initiating unplanned gunfire and tragedy. The Governor seeks to protect the young men in the unit while the Federal authorities seek to arrest and punish those responsible. People split in their opinions with many calling the guardsmen murderers, others calling them soldiers doing there jobs and another group naming them heroes.

Danny’s name is leaked and he and his school friends end up in a dangerous car chase trying to outrun Federal Agents. The kids get help from a surprising source but now his friends and the world wonder about Danny’s involvement with the Boise incident. Danny especially has to face his own sweetheart who has been harping about ‘those murderers being brought to justice’.

The political standoff escalates to a point where the soldiers have to choose loyalties between the Federal government and Idaho authorities. Idaho is shut off from access, leaving Danny’s fragile mother in another state, causing even more worry for Danny who has been pulled into full time defensive duty.

This story presented a scenario that could be all too real. The story deals with young adult issues of family, school, responsibilities and young love. I enjoyed the action and the real, natural teenage characters - to a point. There is some (sadly true to life?) idiocy in the behavior of the teens and there is one young man that is obsessed with conquering every cute female, younger and older. That activity and the repeated underage drinking makes this book not such a good teen role model/read, in my opinion. The ending crashed a bit with some of that teen idiocy and then leaves the action at an unresolved state.

The story brings to the forefront the very real problem of young adults going into battle situations and having to make difficult decisions that will impact the rest of their lives. On a philosophical level the story also opens up debate on the interesting political/civil issues of state versus national rights which is a timely discussion. I’m curious where the author takes the political battle from here. I recommend this to those who like an entertaining young adult story involving interesting political issues.

Audio Notes: The story is told from Danny’s view and I think Andrew Eiden did a good job of narrating. There was enough diversity in the narration to keep the characters distinct and to keep the story pace engaging. I liked the author’s use of news feeds and this added interest to the audio.

I received this as a free download through SYNC 2014 Summer audios. This selection was paired with the classic The Red Badge of Courage.