SHIP BREAKER A NOVEL BY PAOLO BACIGALUPI

TWU course
Book Review

Book Review: SHIP BREAKER A NOVEL BY PAOLO BACIGALUPI
                         
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bacigalupi, Paolo. 2010.SHIP BREAKER. New York, NY: Little Brown and Company. ISBN 978-0-316-05621-2

2. PLOT SUMMARY
"In a futuristic world, teen aged Nailer scavenges cooper wiring from grounded oil tankers for a living, but when he finds a beached clipper ship with a girl in the wreckage, he has to decide if he should strip the ship for its wealth or rescue the girl."

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Paolo Bacigalupi's "Ship Breaker" is a science fiction story written for a young adult audience. Ship Breaker follows the story of Nailer (the main character, a teenage boy, who works the light crew), an impoverished (make poor or weak) child laborer who lives in a world where oil has all but run out. Nailer's life changes when he and Pima (friend) rescues Nita, the daughter of a rich, powerful family.
Nita is trapped on a modern clipper ship washed up on the beach from a recent hurricane. Nailer faces the most important decision of his life: Strip the ship for all its worth or rescue its lone survivor, a beautiful and wealthy girl who could lead him to a better life.

My favorite quote from Ship Breaker.
"It was just his mind playing tricks, fantasizing that the liquid all around him was actually water. But oil was different. It didn't support a body, no matter how much you wished. It just swallowed you up." Ship Breaker, p.24

Bacigalupi explores poverty, class differences, and the conflict between loyalty and survival.     

4.REVIEW EXCERPT(S
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: "Grade 7 Up--A fast-paced postapolyptic adventure set on the American Gulf Coast. Nailer works light crew; his dirty, dangerous job is to crawl deep into the wrecks of the ancient oil tankers that line the beach, scavenging copper wire and turning it over to his crew boss. After a brutal hurricane passes over, Nailer and his friend Pima stumble upon the wreck of a luxurious clipper ship. It's filled with valuable goods--a "Lucky Strike" that could make them rich, if only they can find a safe way to cash it in. Amid the wreckage, a girl barely clings to life. If they help her, she tells them, she can show them a world of privilege that they never known. But can they trust her? And if so, can they keep the girl safe from Nailer's drug--addicted father? Exciting and sometimes violent, this book will appear to older fans of Scott Westerfeld's "Uglies" series (S&S) and similar action--oriented science fiction.

BOOKLIST: "This YA debut by Bacigalupi, a rising star in adult science fiction, presents a dystopian future like so many YA sf novels. What is common, though, is that although Bacigalupi's future earth is brilliantly imagined and its genesis anchored in contemporary issues, it is secondary to the memorable characters. In a world in which society has stratified, fossil fuels have been consumed, and the seas have risen and drowned coastal cities, Nailer, 17, scavenges beached tankers for scrap metals on the Gulf Coast. Everyday, he tries to "make quota" and avoid his violent, drug-addicted father. After he discovers a modern clipper ship washed up on the beach, Nailer thinks his fortune is made, but then he discovers a survivor trapped in the wreckage--the "swank" daughter of a shipping company owner. Should he slit the girl's throat and sell her for parts or take a chance and help her? Clearly respecting his audience, Bacigalupi skillfully integrates his world building into the compelling narrative, threading the back story into the pulsing action. The characters are layered and complex, and their almost unthinkable actions and choices seem totally credible. Vivid, brutal, and thematically rich, this captivating title is sure to win teen fans for the award-winning Bacigalupi.

5. CONNECTIONS
Awards: Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature and National Book Award Finalist.
*Invite children to research the dystopian society. Discuss how the dystopian society is similar and different.
*Other books that encourage young men to do the right or wrong thing to get what they want:
Bacigalupi, Paolo. THE DROWNED CITIES. ISBN-10: 0316056243. ISBN-13: 978-0316056243
Bacigalupi, Paolo. THE WINDUP GIRL. ISBN-10: 1597801584. ISBN-13: 978-1597801584
Roth, Veronica. DIVERGENT (Book 1). ISBN-10: 0062024035. ISBN-13: 978-0062024039