AWAY, by Megan E. Freeman, Aladdin, Feb. 11, 2025, Hardcover, $18.99 (ages 10 and up)
A group of kids investigate the threat that prompted large-scale evacuations in Away, a companion novel to Megan E. Freeman’s Alone.
After an imminent yet unnamed danger forces people across Colorado to leave their homes, a group of kids including an aspiring filmmaker and a budding journalist find themselves in the same evacuation camp. As they cope with the aftermath of having their world upended, they grow curious about the mysterious threat.
And as they begin to investigate, they start to discover that there’s less truth and more cover-up to what they’re being told. Can they get to the root of the conspiracy, expose the bad actors, and bring an end to the upheaval before it’s too late? —Synopsis provided by Aladdin
Told in multiple points of view Away is an engrossing read that holds interest from beginning to end.
Author Megan E. Freeman utilizes different forms of prose — verse, letters, articles, scripts. This helps separate voices and gives readers a better sense of individual personalities.
What really sets Away apart though, is the plot, which quite honestly enough on its own to make this book worthwhile. You add in the characters and interactions, and it becomes a comprehensive, well-developed novel that you don’t want to put down.
Away takes place in the same world as Alone, but you don’t need to read one to understand the other. That said, they’re both excellent and worth reading.
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