Genre and Themes: Young Adult Science Fiction - dystopia, apocalyptic, LGBQ, insects
Austin Szerba is a hormonal and sexually confused teen and self-proclaimed historian describing the end of the world. It begins with him and his gay friend Robby who are hanging out in the back alley of the mall called Grasshopper Jungle. They get beaten and their things get thrown up the roof by Grant and some other high school bullies. Robby is upset and decides to write "Grant Wallace Murdered Me" with blood from his injury. Austin and Robby decide to back to retrieve their things when they discover the roof top access door is open and the boys decide to go in to snoop into the office of Austin's boss from his part-time job. The boys stumble upon a lot of oddities, particular a glowing mass called "Contained Plague 412E". While they're snooping around Grant and the bullies return and Austin and Robby hide. Grant and his posse steal the glowing mass and end up accidentally dropping it onto Robby's blood from his earlier message. This incident creates the plague to come alive and create giant man-eating praying mantis whose only objective is to eat and have sex. Austin and Robby escape and seek refuge at Austin girlfriend's, Shann, house where they come across a machine that types out a message saying that they must seek refuge at a silo. All three and their parents escape to the silo where they learn more about the plague and how to stop it. Their efforts are strong but unsuccessful and they live out the rest of their lives in their shelter. This story has a lot of strong language and references to gore and sex which would me much more suited for older teens.Awards Won by This Title:
2014 - Boston Globe - Horn Book Award
2015 - Michael L. Printz Honor
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