This is a great sci-fi, dystopian novel with plenty of action packed moments. John David Anderson is a great author and this book is no exception! I would recommend to 6th grade and up based on some language and situations. (“Too sexy for you”, characters being shot and injured, “freaking” “hell” etc)

#stowaway #netgalley
Thanks to Net Galley for providing this advance copy of Stowaway.

This is easily Anderson’s best effort yet and that’s saying a lot! You will be drawn in immediately by the writing and swept up in the plot. Fans of Guardians of the Galaxy and Star Wars will find many relatable arcs. Plus there are plenty of Easter eggs for adult readers. Stowaway follows the hero’s journey of young Leo Fender, a plucky and intrepid protagonist. It is set sometime post 2050. In 2044, Alien life has been confirmed and welcomed with open arms.

“Do not fear, they said. We are friends. That was it, at first. Those two proclamations, though many more followed in the days and weeks to come. Revelations to a shocked and anxious planet. That we humans were only one of hundreds of civilized species in the galaxy. That all our wildest dreams about interstellar travel were about to come true overnight. And that our planet, the lovely blue and green marble called Earth, contained a treasure more precious than we ever dreamed of. Ventasium. Loads of it. Heaps of it. Deep in the planet’s crust. And they, the Aykari, would show us how to use it.”

“the Aykari were technologically superior in every way. The one thing the people of Earth had to offer them, that the planet itself had to offer, the visitors could have easily taken by force. But they didn’t. They asked nicely. Share your ventasium, they said, and we will be your personal escorts into this great big universe. And humanity did the only thing it could do in that situation. It said, Okay.”

But the Aykari are not the only ones who want ventasium. Great conflict abounds in the galaxy. And on earth, mining ventasium has come at great cost to the environment. Leo’s father is a renowned, Nobel prize winning scientist. When the war over ventasium comes to earth and exacts a great toll, Dr. Fender decides it’s time to protect his family. He signs on with Aykari to be a scientific adviser and researcher, in space. Leo and his brother Gareth are forced to leave home behind. They spend the next three years on a research ship until one fateful day when the enemy Djarik storm the ship, take Dr. Fender captive, and leave the ship and her crew stranded in space with no fuel, low supplies, and no communications. Leo and Gareth are desperate to find their father. Days later, pirates board the disabled vessel in hopes of an easy mark. Gareth senses an opportunity to stowaway aboard the pirate ship to get help for the crew and ship; to get word to Aykari command about what has happened to his father. Alas, there’s only room for one in the storage compartment and time is running out. Gareth tricks Leo into climbing in first and then makes Leo see that he is their best hope. ““Be brave, Leo,” Gareth said, holding up one hand as the hatch slid closed.” Thus begins Leo’s galactic adventures and hero’s journey.

Anderson’s prose is sublime and the narrative is punctuated with humor and snappy dialogue. “The devils take you, you bowel-crusted, feces-eating snarf sucker!” The characters and world building are fully fleshed out. It’s a story about the meaning of home, family, and friendship. Plus a whole lot of galactic hi jinx.

I loved it. I can’t wait for the next installment! I’m only sorry I won’t be able to hand it to my students until August 2021! Thank you, John David Anderson!