Book Summary and Reviews of Fallout by Todd Strasser

Fallout by Todd Strasser

Fallout

by Todd Strasser

  • Critics' Consensus (2):
  • Readers' Rating (1):
  • Published:
  • Sep 2013, 272 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

What if the bomb had actually been dropped? What if your family was the only one with a shelter?

In the summer of 1962, the possibility of nuclear war is all anyone talks about. But Scott's dad is the only one in the neighborhood who actually prepares for the worst. As the neighbors scoff, he builds a bomb shelter to hold his family and stocks it with just enough supplies to keep the four of them alive for two critical weeks. In the middle of the night in late October, when the unthinkable happens, those same neighbors force their way into the shelter before Scott's dad can shut the door. With not enough room, not enough food, and not enough air, life inside the shelter is filthy, physically draining, and emotionally fraught. But even worse is the question of what will - and won't - remain when the door is opened again. Internationally best-selling author Todd Strasser has written his most impressive and personal novel to date, ruthlessly yet sensitively exploring the terrifying what-ifs of one of the most explosive moments in human history.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. Strasser once again combines terrific suspense with thoughtful depth... This riveting examination of things important to a boy suddenly thrust into an adult catastrophe is un-put-down-able." - Kirkus

"Starred Review. An eye-opening 'what if' scenario about the human response to disaster. Ages 10–up." - Publishers Weekly

"A well-written, compelling story with an interesting twist on how history might have turned out." - School Library Journal

This information about Fallout was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Ester Hunter

An interesting but inappropriate book.
The book fallout was an overall disappointing book. The book also was inappropriate to young readers even thought it is about a young 11 year old boys life. The book talks about the female anatomy, breaking bras, stealing, racism, stereotypes, and has mild swear words and violence. The part of the book where they were in the fallout shelter was a boring and badly written piece and was overall bland and uninteresting. Would not recommend for young readers. However it represents 1962 well and is realistic about an actual bomb shelter.

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Author Information

Todd Strasser

Todd Strasser is the author of more than 140 novels for children and teens, most notably The Wave, which is taught in classrooms around the world. He lives in New York.

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