My Chemical Mountain

May 13, 2013
Vacco’s grim but impressive debut, winner of the Delacorte Press Prize, occasionally stumbles on its own sense of bleakness and the extreme complacency of its characters, but lyrical prose and strong characters make it worth the read. In the town of Poxton—imagine the exaggerated pollution of Springfield from The Simpsons without any of the humor—14-year-olds Jason and Charlie drink orange water from Two Mile Creek and investigate the landfill they’ve nicknamed Chemical Mountain, collecting mutated fish and other samples of pollution. Since local employment relies on Mareno Chemical, few are willing to challenge the company, even as most of the town shows the effect of toxic dumping. The “we can’t lose our jobs” attitude works to a point, but the over-the-top nature of the pollution makes the adult conspiracy of silence difficult to swallow. Never-theless, the push by the boys and their tech genius friend Cornpup to get people to acknowledge the horrors Mareno has inflicted on Poxton (which mirror the real-life environmental pollution that inspired Vacco) should help readers think hard about the issue. Ages 14–up.

May 15, 2013
If the local chemical plant killed your father and used your backyard as a dumping ground, you'd want revenge, too. With an opening scene featuring powerful rain, sulfur in the wind and "steamy chemical sludge," the overwritten dystopian novel immediately comes to mind. But this gritty debut depicts the reality of a toxic town. Fourteen-year-old narrator Jason's father died in an "accident" after speaking out against the chemical plant that rules the town, and his mother has turned to food for comfort. It is his quest to take down the chemical plant. Also hungry for revenge are friends Charlie and Cornpup, who also bear the scars the chemical plant has left on the town. Reminiscent of The Outsiders (and not just because of Cornpup's unusual name), the story concentrates on the boys' tight bond and how they both embrace and fight against the danger in their lives. The most stunning part of the story remains the visceral descriptions ("a trail of green puddles that never dry up; a rusty railcar full of weird, smelly rocks; and a perfect square of earth where you can dig for hours without seeing a single insect") that ooze throughout. The teens' Freak Museum, filled with mutated animals, equally repels and fascinates. Because of these strengths, the abrupt ending is disappointing, but it does not discount the story as a compelling read. Dark and unflinching. (Fiction. 14 & up)

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May 1, 2013

Gr 7 Up-Jason is about to enter high school with his two best friends, dangerously confident football star Charlie Pellitero and cautious and sickly William "Cornpup" Schumacher. They live in a town all but owned by the overarching and ominous company Mareno Chem, and their noxious playgrounds are waste-coated landfills. Whether it's swimming in the polluted Two Mile Creek or dirt biking up Chemical Mountain, there's no part of Poxton that doesn't belong to them. Jason needs the distraction. Following his father's death in an accident at the plant that employs most of the town, his mother has taken to overeating. Jason can barely look at her or talk to her about anything important anymore. While the promise of a first love with girl-next-door Val is a strong possibility, there's also the looming threat of local bully Kevin Thompson, who's vowed to beat Jason up. When a town meeting gives Cornpup the chance to show off the cysts covering his back and a forum to speak out against Mareno Chem for poisoning his family and friends, a shift occurs among the three boys. This debut novel, with its detailed descriptions of the toxic landscape and dangerous antics, will likely draw male readers in, but a budding romance and subtle insight into Jason's changing relationship with his friends guarantee that there's a little something for all readers in this well-thought-out, well-executed story.-Ryan P. Donovan, New York Public Library

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2013
Teenager Jason Hammond lost his father in a deadly mishap at the Mareno Chem plant. His mother eats to mask her pain; Jason channels his anger and grief into his drawing. But Jason has his two best friends to keep him company: Charlie, a fearless fire-loving jock, and smart, sickly Cornpup. All summer they roam the industrial zone near their neighborhood, swim in the toxic creek, use their imaginations to develop a mutant-filled Freak Museum and Freak Tour, and ride their dirt bikes around a landfill they call Chemical Mountain. The three boys also vandalize Mareno Chem property, with different motivations for seeking revenge on the company they all hate for polluting their town and lives, though the ultimate cost may be too great. Vacco's thought-provoking modern-day dystopian novel, set in a fictional upstate New York factory town, is plausible and action-packed. From Jason's complex teenage boy perspective, she captures both the disheartening helplessness of the situation (a wealthy, corrupt company versus a dependent town) and the boys' reckless resistance: "We cross a landfill on our way to school. We swim in creek water that smells like nail polish remover...We are not fools. We are brave and brilliant." There is power and hope in that kind of statement, and Jason's coming-of-age tale, though dark, is full of both. cynthia k. ritter

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

July 1, 2013
Jason and his friends roam the industrial zone near their neighborhood, swim in the toxic creek, and ride their dirt bikes around a landfill they call Chemical Mountain. Vacco's thought-provoking modern-day dystopian novel, set in a fictional upstate New York factory town, is plausible and action-packed. She captures both the disheartening helplessness of the situation and the boys' reckless resistance from Jason's complex perspective.

(Copyright 2013 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)