Synopses & Reviews
This irresistible first novel tells the story of a quiet boy who embarks on a dangerous quest in order to fulfill his destiny -- and find his father -- in a strange world beneath New York City.
When Gregor falls through a grate in the laundry room of his apartment building, he hurtles into the dark Underland, where spiders, rats, cockroaches coexist uneasily with humans. This world is on the brink of war, and Gregor's arrival is no accident. A prophecy foretells that Gregor has a role to play in the Underland's uncertain future. Gregor wants no part of it -- until he realizes it's the only way to solve the mystery of his father's disappearance. Reluctantly, Gregor embarks on a dangerous adventure that will change both him and the Underland forever.
Review
"Those with strong stomachs for the gross and creepy may be the audience for this Kafkaesque book."--School Library Journal "Impressively unappetizing and absolutely unique."--Booklist "Dark and unsettling, Thompson's adventure presents a break from the same-old-same-old by creating something utterly new and weird . . . this is a tale to jolt readers out of their complacency, where characters change in unfamiliar ways with no guarantee of a happy ending."--Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
Kafka's Metamorphosis meets Gregor the Overlander in this supernatural literary drama wherein Evan is slowly turning into a wuftoom, large wormlike creatures who can speak and have their own civilization underground. In fact, many creatures we would think of as insects have dark civilizations below, and as Evan discovers more of their struggles, wars, and desires, he realizes he must give up everything he once held dear.
Synopsis
Everyone thinks Evan is sick . . . Everyone thinks science will find a cure. But Evan knows he is not sick; he is transforming. Evans metamorphosis has him confined to his bed, constantly terrified, and completely alone. Alone except for his visits from the Wuftoom, a wormlike creature that tells him he is becoming one of them.
Clinging to his humanity and desperate to help his overworked single mother, Evan makes a bargain with the Vitflies, the sworn enemies of the Wuftoom. But when the bargain becomes blackmail and the Vitflies prepare for war, whom can Evan trust? Is saving his humanity worth destroying an entire species, and the only family he has left?