Gregor the Overlander
by Suzanne Collins

Suzanne Collins has become quite famous recently for her Hunger Games trilogy, but before there were Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, there was Gregor the Overlander.  Gregor lives with his family in a New York City apartment.  Over two years ago, his smart and loving father disappeared--seemingly just fell off the face of the earth.  Since then, he and his sisters and their mother have just existed, trying to make do, and trying not to lose hope.  This summer, Gregor will not be able to attend the summer camp he attended last year.  His mother must work, and there's no one to stay with his 2 year-old sister, Boots, since his grandmother has become increasingly senile.  Gregor is sorely disappointed, but refuses to allow himself to feel anything too deeply.  He stays home, watches his sister, does the laundry, and waits. 

One day, while in the basement washing clothes, Boots falls through a grate in the basement wall.  There's nothing for Gregor to do but follow her in, falling and falling for miles, down to an underground world inhabited by humans, giant cockroaches called "crawlers", enormous and vicious rats, and a variety of other surprising creatures.  Gregor soon learns that his father is in this world being held prisoner by the rats, and he sets off on a quest with a number of companions, not only to find and rescue his father, but to fulfill an ancient prophecy. Those making the quest encounter one danger and adventure after another, battling the dark environment, evil creatures, and treachery within their own ranks.  In the Underland, Collins has created a rich and believable world, and in Gregor, a character full of courage and creative intelligence.  Though Gregor and the Underlanders face frightening and brutal realities, baby Boots provides the comic relief this story needs.  A great read for those who love alternate worlds.
                ~reviewed by Mrs. Sams