Title: GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE
Author: Andrew SmithGenre: Fiction | YA | LBGTRelease Date: 2/11/14
Sixteen-year-old Austin Szerba interweaves the story of his Polish legacy with the story of how he and his best friend , Robby, brought about the end of humanity and the rise of an army of unstoppable, six-foot tall praying mantises in small-town Iowa.
To make matters worse, Austin's hormones are totally oblivious; they don't care that the world is in utter chaos: Austin is in love with his girlfriend, Shann, but remains confused about his sexual orientation. He is stewing in a self-professed constant state of maximum horniness, directed at both Robby and Shann.
Ultimately, it is up to Austin to save the world and propagate the species in this sci-fright journey of survival, sex, and the complex realities of the human condition.
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This is the truth. This is history.
It’s the end of the world. And nobody knows anything about it.
You know what I mean.
It’s the end of the world. And nobody knows anything about it.
You know what I mean.
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GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE is definitely not your ordinary YA novel. Nor does it fall within the confines of contemporary, paranormal, or any other genre. Smith crosses the genre gap by bridging elements of each type of novel into one epic journey.
The characters are raw, original, and real. As a reader, it is next to impossible to not be able to relate to Austin, Robbie, and Shann. Their lives are depicted in a way that interconnects into a dizzying, spell-binding story arc that leaves the reader breathless and full of questions.
The concept of main character, Austin, using the book as a means of recording history is brilliant – as is the incorporation of giant praying mantises, genetically modified corn, and the end of the world. Those plot points sound far-fetched and completely unrelatable, but Andrew Smith makes them work.
Smith has a very unique writing style – it is definitely one of the kinds that as a reader, you will either love or hate. While many parts of GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE are hilarious (I seriously laughed out loud and have quotes jotted down everywhere), you have to have a very open mind and understand Smith as an author. His humor is dry and somewhat crass, but when used in the context of the novel, it is original and perfect.
GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE was the first novel I have read by Andrew Smith, but will definitely not be my last. I know I will be pulling his previous books down from my shelves as soon as possible and re-immersing myself into the genius that is Andrew Smith.
Guest Review by: Victoria Lucas
Andrew Smith is the award-winning author of several Young Adult novels, including the critically acclaimed Winger (Starred reviews in Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Booklist, and Shelf Awareness—an Amazon “Best of the Year”) and The Marbury Lens (A YALSA BFYA, and Starred reviews and Best of the Year in both Publishers Weekly and Booklist).
He is a native-born Californian who spent most of his formative years traveling the world. His university studies focused on Political Science, Journalism, and Literature. He has published numerous short stories and articles. Grasshopper Jungle, coming February 11, 2014, is his seventh novel. He lives in Southern California.
*Bonus!For those of you that purchase a copy of GRASSHOPPER JUNGLE any time during the month of February will receive a one of a kind #unstoppableprizepack filled with lots of goodies.
To qualify you must send proof of purchase dated before 3.1.14 to amydelrosso(at)gmail(dot)com.
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