Trapped Review

Trapped by Michael Northrop

Publisher: Scholastic

Release date: January 1, 2011

Source: Publisher and Author

The day the blizzard started, no one knew that it was going to keep snowing for a week. That for those in its path, it would become not just a matter of keeping warm, but of staying alive....

Scotty and his friends Pete and Jason are among the last seven kids at their high school waiting to get picked up that day, and they soon realize that no one is coming for them. Still, it doesn't seem so bad to spend the night at school, especially when distractingly hot Krista and Julie are sleeping just down the hall. But then the power goes out, then the heat. The pipes freeze, and the roof shudders. As the days add up, the snow piles higher, and the empty halls grow colder and darker, the mounting pressure forces a devastating decision....

Review:

Just reading the summary for Trapped I was creeped out... especially because of our own impending snow storm. Michael Northrop had me gripping the pages, unable to stop reading, because I just had to find out what was going to happen to those students trapped in the school.

Trapped was a very intriguing and original sophomore novel that will have readers glued to the pages simply because they want to see what else can go wrong for the characters and to make sure they survive. At first, getting stuck in the school overnight didn't seen so bad, but then things started to become more dangerous and it was no longer a fight to escape, but a fight for their lives.

Scotty is the main character and our narrator throughout the ordeal. He was a realistic and believable teenage boy dealing with typical sophomore age problems (girls, pimples, etc). We didn't really get to know the other characters (Elijah, Les, Jason, Pete, Krista, and Julie) and the novel mainly focused on plot and small details with what was going on in the school rather than character development. Some of the characters did get a taste of romance and the kids tried to make the most of their situation. It was impressive how strong they stayed at first and worked together to make the best of things. As the novel progressed more tension between certain characters was revealed and all of the victims were changing and starting to break down. My heart went out to them and I even started to feel a little claustrophobic while reading.

This definitely isn't a light hearted read. There is pain, suffering, and even death. It's a short novel though and once I got past the first few chapters I wasn't able to put it down. Creepy and intense things just kept going from bad to worse...

The plot of Trapped was definitely original, and timely, due to all the snow we're getting lately. It made me consider what it would be like stuck in my school under ten feet of snow *shivers*. The ending was a little abrupt and I wish there was some more closure, especially for Scotty. Although I didn't love everything about this book it will make you think and be extra thankful for the warm fire you're curled up next too. Overall, I do recommend checking this out. It's a solid sophomore novel and will also appeal to both male and female readers.

Overall: 4 out of 5 stars