Module 8: The Forest of Hands and Teeth

Module 8: (October 11-17)

Ryan, C. (2009). The Forest of Hands and Teeth. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.

Summary: In this post-apocalyptic future we find a small village surrounded by a fence, which is in turn surrounded by the aptly called “forest of hands and teeth” which is full of “the Unconsecrated,” aka zombies. Mary, the main character, and her fellow villagers believe they are the only human survivors left in the world—a lie perpetuated by the controlling Sisterhood of the village. However, once the town is overrun by the Unconsecrated, Mary and five other survivors must try to make their way through fence-lined paths in an attempt to make it out of the forest alive—or otherwise become Unconsecrated themselves.

My Impressions: I chose to read this book because the title intrigued me, and I almost didn’t keep reading it after about page three when I realized it was about zombies! It wasn’t that I thought I was “above” the subject; mostly I was just a bit freaked out by the concept. I never read anything this scary, and it got pretty creepy at times considering I was reading it late at night in an empty house. The author did such a good job with her descriptions and the building of suspense that I had to leave the light on for awhile before going to sleep! Fans of zombies or other horror novels will probably love this.

Reviews: “Mary’s detached, often pensive narration makes the graphic, gory details all the more biting in a complex story of isolation, longing, perseverance, and survival that ends with a glimmer of hope.”—School Library Journal. http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6699411.html

“In this sci-fi/horror novel, the suspense that Ryan has created from the very first page on entices and tempts readers so that putting the book down is not an option. The author skillfully conceals and reveals just enough information to pique curiosity while also maintaining an atmosphere of creepiness that is expected in a zombie story. Some of the descriptions of death and mutilation of both the Unconsecrated and the living are graphic. The story is riveting, even though it leaves a lot of questions to be explained in the sequel.”—Debra Banna, Sharon Public Library, MA. School Library Journal. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385736827/sr=1-1/qid=1290931345/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1290931345&sr=1-1

Library Use: I actually used this as part of the book talk I did for our teen library volunteers yesterday! The title of my talk was “YA Fantasy, Science Fiction, and Horror.” This book was definitely one of the books I talked about in the horror section! I think girls and boys alike would like this book, though if they are scaredy cats like me, they might not want to read it late at night!

Image retrieved from: http://www.amazon.com/Forest-Hands-Teeth-Paperback/dp/B003EGGLAU/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1290837951&sr=1-12