The Bunker Diary

Add to Wishlist

The Bunker Diary

eBook

$8.99 ~~$9.99~~ Save 10%

eBook
$8.99 ~~$9.99~~ Save 10% Current price is $8.99, Original price is $9.99. You Save 10%.

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.

WANT A NOOK? Explore Now

Buy As Gift

Related collections and offers

Overview

I can't believe I fell for it.
It was still dark when I woke up this morning.
As soon as my eyes opened I knew where I was.
A low-ceilinged rectangular building made entirely of whitewashed concrete.
There are six little rooms along the main corridor.
There are no windows. No doors. The elevator is the only way in or out.
What's he going to do to me?
What am I going to do?

People are really quite simple, and they have simple needs. Food, water, light, space, privacy. Maybe a small measure of dignity. A bit of freedom. What happens when someone simply takes all that away?

Product Details
About the Author

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467776882
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	03/01/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	264
Sales rank:	376,522
File size:	966 KB
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kevin Brooks grew up in Exeter, England. He studied Psychology and Philosophy at Birmingham Aston University and Cultural Studies in London. Brooks inhabited a variety of jobs before becoming a full-time writer including: musician, gasoline station attendant, crematorium handyman, and hot dog vendor. His first published work, Martyn Pig, won the Branford Boase Award and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. He now lives in North Yorkshire, England, with his wife, four dogs, six sheep, eight chickens, and two rabbits.

Date of Birth:

March 30, 1959

Place of Birth:

Exeter, Devon, England

Education:

B.A. in Cultural Studies, Aston University, 1983

From the B&N Reads Blog

Page 1 of

Gabi, a Girl in Pieces, and 9 More Diary-Style YAs We Love

01/05/2015
The fragmented, occasionally incoherent diary of 16-year-old Linus Weems, trapped with five strangers in an underground bunker, offers a disturbing window into the mind of a boy struggling to find sense in a senseless situation, as the possibility of escape or rescue—and the ability to cling to any semblance of hope—diminishes by the day. Each inmate has a tale of being snatched and drugged, awakening in an elevator that opens into the bunker. Every room is surveilled by camera and microphone; the bedrooms are equipped with a Bible, pen, and notebook. Requests sent to their captor via elevator are sometimes answered, sometimes ignored, and sometimes terribly perverted. There’s little by way of character development; Linus at the end is the same boy he was at the beginning, with a lot more experience of suffering. The Man Upstairs, literally and figuratively (Linus begins to think of him as He), is never revealed. Relentlessly bleak, this recent Carnegie Medal–winner fascinates, provokes, and horrifies as Brooks (iBoy) stays true to his nihilistic aims, pushing readers toward an inexorable conclusion. Ages 13–up. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Trapped. Without hope. No windows to reveal location and no way to get out. Seventeen-year-old Linus, the first victim, knows nothing about why he is kidnapped, where he is, or how he gets there. He is alone…for a short time. Then little Jenny arrives, sad and terrified. She looks to Linus for help, and he does what he can. With four more empty rooms in the bunker, Linus fears the worst; and it is not long before his fears become reality. The victims never see their kidnapper, but do what they can to second-guess him or her. Collaboration becomes a necessity. They share their food…mostly. They learn to live together…some more willingly than others. They all suffer when something does not please the one who captured them. Beware: this winner of the 2014 Carnegie Medal studiously avoids a happy ending. This powerfully written novel will make one think. Reviewer: Bonita Herold; Ages 12 up.

Children's Literature - Bonita Herold

★ 12/01/2014
Gr 10 Up—Linus is a 16-year-old runaway living on the harsh English streets who wakes up one day in an unfamiliar underground bunker with no water or food while under constant surveillance by an unknown kidnapper. As each day passes, more people are kidnapped and are subjected to the same brutal conditions. When Linus and the rest try to escape and find out more about their situation and their kidnapper, they realize that, with their options dwindling, they may have to resort to the ultimate horror to survive. Brooks's controversial Carnegie Medal-winner is truly a psychologically disturbing book that will leave readers with a deep sense of unease. Linus's first-person narrative will make teens ask themselves what they would do in his situation. It's not a title for everyone: some may be unsettled by the harsh realities the protagonist faces, while others will be fascinated by the simple complexity of Brooks's prose and truly effective storytelling. A unique choice that will get teens talking.—Christopher Lassen, Brooklyn Public Library

School Library Journal

★ 2014-12-06
Knocked unconscious and kidnapped, 16-year-old Linus wakes alone in a small, windowless, concrete building. The only way in or out is a lift that comes, empty, twice a day. With no food and no contact with his captor, Linus begins a journal. On the third day, a 9-year-old girl named Jenny appears, and food is finally delivered. Over several days, four more captives arrive, all adults, including a big, burly junkie, an uptight young businesswoman and a middle-aged businessman. Last to arrive is Russell, a famous philosopher who's dying of a brain tumor. In a setting reminiscent of Jean-Paul Sartre's No Exit, this suspenseful, riveting winner of the 2014 Carnegie Medal explores existentialism through the different stages of life embodied by the six characters. Jenny wonders what they're being punished for and why their captor is so bad. Linus wonders why they are there and what their captor wants. He notices that the clocks are being manipulated and ponders what past, present and future mean when you're captive and dependent on an all-powerful "Man Upstairs" for life's essentials. Wise Russell, the only character of color, calmly works out where they must be and helps the others see the humanity in themselves and each other. Brooks' latest is not an easy novel, but it's one that begs for rereading to suss the intricacies of its construction of plot, character development and insight into the human condition. Not for everyone, this heady novel is worthy of study alongside existentialist works of the 20th century. (Fiction. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews

Related collections and offers

Overview

Product Details

About the Author

Related Subjects

Customer Reviews