Unnatural Disasters, written by Jeff Hirsch, reviewed by Bethany Bratney

Summary: It’s 2049, and Lucy has her post-graduation plan locked down. She & her boyfriend, Luke, are not going to college like their peers and families expect. They are going to travel the world, working when necessary, enjoying their lives while they still have a chance in a world that is at constant risk for disaster. Then the worst happens - Washington D.C. is attacked, setting off a string of new threats of nuclear war. Combined with the pendulous climate changes and oppressive fear, Lucy’s small town of Bethany, New York becomes a quiet and confusing place. As the people Lucy loves most become more distant and unreachable, Lucy must try to figure out how to carry on in a world that has succumbed to everyone’s worst nightmare. 

Straight Talk for Librarians: There are some exciting plot points here, but this story hangs its hat on its characters. Lucy’s frustration with the world that she lives in, the way it has been handled and mistreated by previous generations, is tangible and cutting. Young readers will relate to Lucy’s feeling of helplessness and to the inexplicable apathy of others that Lucy endures as she comes of age in a disaster-riddled world. Veiled and mysterious backstory surrounding Lucy’s mother, combined with several complicated friendships, add to Lucy’s characterization as well as the suspenseful arc of the story. Fans of Hirsch’s other work will be eager to read this volume, and dystopian enthusiasts will find a different kind of excitement in visiting this world while it devolves.