cover image How Samantha Smart Became a Revolutionary

How Samantha Smart Became a Revolutionary

Dawn Green. Red Deer, $14.95 trade paper (312p) ISBN 978-0-88995-549-3

College student Samantha Smart unwittingly becomes “the so-called voice of the revolution” in Green’s tense story of a nation succumbing to totalitarianism. The novel flips between past and present-day action, with sections labeled “Then” introducing Samantha as an ambitious and outspoken college freshman falling for her school’s football star, Brady. With a polarizing election approaching, Samantha’s political science T.A. identifies her strong voice and encourages her to use it. After Brady joins the Guard Elite, a fascist police force formed by president King after the election, and a stadium bombing gets labeled as a terrorist attack, Samantha is thrust into the spotlight, considered a hero by some and a traitor by others. In the book’s “Now” chapters, Samantha has been captured by King’s Guard, enduring gruesome torture before attempting to escape. Although the novel is fast-paced and action-packed, character development is thin. Chapters structured as newscasts and interviews highlight the media’s role in stoking national fears and anxieties, but the novel never escapes a preachy tone, particularly in the heavy-handed conversations between Samantha and her friends. Ages 12–up. (Oct.)