Deathwatch by Robb White is a suspenseful Realistic Fiction book that kept me on the edge of my seat from almost beginning to end. The story is about a young man, Ben, and his fight for survival in the sweltering, lifeless desert.
A wealthy middle aged man, named Madec, hires Ben, a college student, to show him where to find Bighorn Sheep in the desert. You have to win a lottery to hunt bighorn, and you can only hunt them for seven days. Madec brought Ben because he was close to the desert and knew where the sheep were. In return, Madec was going to pay him enough money to get him through about a year of college. When Madec mistakes an old prospector for a sheep and accidentally kills him, that's when Ben learns about Madec's dark side. Ben wants to report the accident, but instead Madec refuses to go into town and begins to hunt Ben to prevent him from reporting the accidental death. The story of how Madec hunts Ben and what Ben does to try and survive in the summer desert is very exciting and will get you thinking when you're done with it.
Although there aren't very many action packed moments in this book, it is intense the entire time. Ben is constantly in danger from lack of water, food, and shelter, and, of course, Madec. It was very interesting to read what Ben was able to use out in the desert where there is no water, food, nor shelter. The ways that Ben finds to use what little he has with him is very creative, and yet remains realistic.
I think that the book is a great read, and it really makes you wonder if someone would really do all of these awful things to another person. It was a bit hard to follow sometimes, though, because it would be talking about one thing and then suddenly switch to an another seemingly unrelated subject. Everything said does have a reason for being in the book, even if you don't quite understand it at the time.
The idea that one person could be so cruel to another was a very big part in the story. The book suggests that some people would go to extremes to cover up for what they've done. It kind of scared me to think that somebody might be desperate enough to kill twice to cover up for one mistake, rather than own up to it and face minimal consequences. I honestly don't think that someone would, or even could, go this low in real life, because of the extreme guilt that would come with the act. The book actually covers all of this, and is key to the storyline, which I thought really added some interest to it.
Overall, this book is awesome. It puts a new perspective on human morals, and it keeps you entertained all the way through. Although it was a bit unclear or hard to follow in some parts, it all makes sense in the end. I liked how it brought up almost all of the questions or "fake" things that you might see in the storyline, and the end of the book is really powerful, and it keeps you thinking about it for the rest of the day. I recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a short, suspensful read that will make you forget all about dinner(or at least until your mom yells at you for not coming the first time she asked) and immerse you into Ben's world of betrayal and danger. I'd give this book an A+, easily.
Hatchet is an amazing book that I really enjoyed. It was written by Gary Paulsen who I personally think is one of the best writers ever. I enjoyed this book and could read it over and over again. It had a lot of "adrenaline rushing" parts that literally took your breath away.
