Review Detail

PREPPED is a really captivating YA contemporary fiction. Becca is 17 years old and dreams of going away to college to study physics. She has applied and needs a good financial aid package to make it. Becca lives with her parents and younger sister in a unique community in Ohio - a community of preppers. This means that Becca's life is dictated by preparing for the end of the world, including horrible (life-threatening) prepper exercises designed to prepare her for apocalyptic scenarios, like treading water in a frozen pond for 10 minutes.

Becca's dreams are changed after an accident that leaves her father in the hospital and her cruel mother in charge of the settlement. Though Becca thought things could not get any worse, her mother and her new policies seem determined to prove her wrong. Now, Becca must consider her fourth grade sister and her future in the same breath. When she learns that the boy to which she has been engaged, Roy, may not be the faithful disciple of prepping he appears to be, Becca's plans begin to evolve.

What I loved: This was a really fascinating look at prepping and the challenges that being in such a community can create. Becca is also dealing with neglect, as her mother will not provide the small necessities she and her sister need nor do any caregiving. Between the challenges/training and the other issues Becca faces, there are definite child abuse problems that become a major theme of the book. In such abusive situations, it can be impossible to leave, and the book does a great job of showing the challenges on all sides of that decision.

The romance was a smaller part of the book, but I really enjoyed the dynamics between Becca and Roy. Although it starts off a bit rough, as they have been basically told they will marry without any choice, their relationship does grow from their shared experience, and I loved it. I also really loved Katie, Sydney, and Becca's teacher who helps to make things possible. There are some really great characters in this book. A running theme through the book is hope, and the tone remains hopeful throughout.

Final verdict: PREPPED is a compelling read about hope, love, and plans. Ultimately a moving story of surviving and escaping abuse, this was a thought-provoking book that kept me captivated throughout.