The Water Wars - Cameron Stracher
Imagine a world where water is virtually GONE. Drinkable water is controlled by the powerful. The everyday people are left dry and thirsty all the time. They are lucky to get the government-issued desalinated water. This is water that comes from the ocean but is run through a purification process to remove the minerals and has chemicals added to make it possible for people to drink it. Vera, the main character, describes it as “slippery on the tongue with a tangy aftertaste – like licking a burnt match.”Wasting water is illegal. If you use more than your allotment it is possible to go to jail. Everyone is thirsty. Everything is dying without water – including people.Vera can’t even imagine how her life will change when she meets a new boy named Kai. He is surrounded by mystery – he doesn’t go to school, he has armed guards, and most shocking of all, he always has plenty of water to drink. As she and Will get to know Kai better, they learn some of his secrets. And then he’s gone. Disappeared. Taken.Vera and Will set off to find Kai – determined to bring him back no matter what it takes.WATER WARS starts out great. The idea of a world without water is easy to imagine and the author really paints a clear picture of what life is like for these people dying a little more each day from dehydration. The problems started when Vera and Will leave home to find Kai. The situations they find themselves in had me rolling my eyes and saying you have got to be kidding. I understand the need for adventure, but for some reason this one didn’t do it for me. It was like, how many death defying situations can these kids get out of? Are they indestructible? In the world of dystopian, post-apocalyptic young adult literture, this is one to read only after you’ve already read the great ones.