The Compound

by S.A. Bodeen

What if the world had been nuked? 

What if your family had an escape plan? 

What if your family had a well-stocked fallout shelter? 

What would happen when things went wrong?

Eli has lived for six years in his family’s compound. An unending compound with room for the whole family, filled with enough supplies to last a nuclear winter of fifteen years. But the time for Eddy has not been one of relief, because for the last six years his identical twin, Eddy, has been dead. Left outside. Because of Eli.

For six years he has not cut his hair. He has not touched anyone. He has cocooned himself from life and from himself, just as much as the compound has cocooned the whole family. After all this time, the strangeness of his life underground doesn’t seem shocking.  But then Eli finally makes the choice to enter his brother’s room in the compound. And his world is torn apart.

Review:

Excellent! I would actually say that the ideas presented in this book were more disturbing than the violence of The Hunger Games or the mercy killing in This World We Live In. The pacing is fast and exciting, and despite the brevity of the book, I developed a connection with the characters, especially Eli (narrator) and his older sister, Lexie.

I have a few complaints. First, this book should have been longer. There are a lot of ethical issues that could have been delved into deeper. Second, had the plot been more developed, it would have given more time for Eli to discover more about the compound and his father’s insane plans. Hence, as a reader, I would have learned more. I love scientific background stories.

Grade: B+