cover image The World Without Us

The World Without Us

Robin Stevenson. Orca, $12.95 trade paper (240p) ISBN 978-1-4598-0680-1

Ever since Melody got drunk at a party and took a handful of Tylenol, she’s been stuck with the reputation of being suicidal. Melody resents her two best friends for spreading rumors about that night, so when new student Jeremy reaches out to her, the 16-year-old jumps at the chance to have a like-minded, empathetic friend. But Jeremy is obsessed with trying to contact his younger brother, Lucas, who drowned two years earlier, through lucid dreaming—or by taking his own life. Melody plays along with Jeremy’s suicide plans until she realizes he’s serious and she’s unable to stop him from jumping off a bridge. Jeremy survives and turns to religion; meanwhile, Melody is left alone with her guilt. Stevenson (Hummingbird Heart) supplements the main plot with a thread about prisoners on death row, juxtaposing the story’s suicide theme with questions about the ethics of execution by the state. These and other issues threaten to overwhelm the story at times, but readers will be left with plenty to ponder about vulnerability, understanding, and escaping one’s demons in order to fully embrace life. Ages 12–up. (Feb.)