Gregor the Overlander

My teenage neighbor lent me Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins, telling me this was one of her favorite series and that she liked it better than the author's other famous series (Hunger Games). This book tells about 11-year-old Gregor who lives in NYC and has a less than ideal life after his dad mysteriously disappeared two years before. Gregor is in charge of watching his 2-year-old sister Boots all summer, and one day while doing laundry, they fall into an air vent and end up in the Underland--a land with humans who fly on bats, giant rats and cockroaches, and spiders. Gregor is immediately on a mission to first, survive, and second, get himself and Boots back home.

This was a really fun book. It was hard to imagine this as being the same author as Hunger Games just because it was so different. But I really liked the plot--once I got into it, it was fast-moving and exciting. The characters were all very endearing--surprisingly, I think a cockroach was one of my favorite characters. I like how the book ended, even though it is a series. I plan to continue reading the rest of the series.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)