Where the Rock Splits the Sky

Gr 9 Up—This novel tackles themes explored in Karen Thompson Walker's The Age of Miracles (Random, 2012) and H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds—an alien invasion has destroyed the moon and caused the Earth to stop spinning on its axis. Aliens attempt to inhabit human bodies and infiltrate cities; one particular area, the Zone, seems to be a playground of experiments for the aliens, with cities flying up into the air with rivers of stone and sand. A trio of friends, led by Megan, forage into the Zone in an attempt to find Megan's father, who presumably has answers to the invasion. Throughout the journey, the trio battle aliens-cum-humans, sleeping air sickness, and outlaws. The ending ties up rather too neatly, but fans of the genre will be pleased. Webb excels in descriptions of the highly imaginative alien environment; where the book struggles is with the thin character development.—Amanda C. Buschmann, Atascocita Middle School, Humble, TX