Will to Survive: The Rule of 3, Book 3

by Eric Walters
Razorbill
978-0-670-06707-7
310 pp.
Ages 12+
January 2016

If you thought the darkness and powerlessness of Eric Walters’ first two books in his apocalyptic The Rule of 3 series (The Rule of Three, Razorbill, 2014; Fight for Power, Razorbill, 2015) were staggering, then Will to Survive will seem enervating.   But, as is said, it's always darkest before the dawn, and Eric Walters is nothing but hopeful in all his writing and definitely in Will to Survive.

The neighbourhood in which sixteen-year-old Adam Daley and his family, friends and others–about sixteen hundred individuals–have created in the aftermath of a power outage of epic proportions is establishing all the right stuff on which civilizations have been founded: government by committee, citizenship, security, food sharing, social welfare, medical care, etc.  But it's been a hard road, with tough decisions regarding security versus social responsibility, survival versus humanity, and life or death.

I know that our neighborhood was a small sliver of civilization in a land where civility had been lost.  Here we were surrounded by twenty-foot walls, protected by armed guards on all sides; we had food, shelter and a layer of order and fairness.  In here was safe.  Beyond was uncertain.  No, not uncertain–wild and dangerous and dog-eat-dog. (pg. 83-84)

Unfortunately that danger encroached on Adam’s feelings of safety at the conclusion of Fight for Power, and Will to Survive begins in the aftermath of Adam's killing of two men, in self-defense, after he was kidnapped by former ally Brett who'd joined with the bandits of the Division.  Even after the neighbourhood sends teams to destroy the compound of the Division, Adam is haunted by what he had to do and is plagued by Brett’s suggestion that he too has become a monster.

But Adam doesn’t have many opportunities to talk to counsellor Maureen about the trauma or spend more time with girlfriend Lori before the neighbourhood is hit by sniper fire that kills three guards.  Pinpointing the origin of the shots as the condo tower outside of the community, and concerned that Brett and his men are behind the attack, the neighbourhood committee, based on Adam’s suggestion, decide to extend the wall outward to engulf the condo community, offering them both services and training to keep them safer.

After more aerial reconnaissance that is both beneficial and terrifying in what they discover, the neighbourhood begins efforts to join with other communities, including one based at the island airport, one at an oil refinery and another at a hospital.

We can stop being a simple star and start to become a constellation of stars, the center of a series of connected neighborhoods. (pg. 110)

But you know sociopathic Brett is going to raise his evil head again and he does, targeting the neighbourhood physically and Adam psychologically, playing their compassion as a weakness.  Unfortunately for him, Brett doesn’t recognize that kindness can be very fortifying too.

Will to Survive is definitely an action-packed adventure, a highly plot-driven story, but the power of Eric Walters’ characters kept me most interested.  The astute strategist, Herb, is one of my favourites.  Knowing that the world might never get back to normal (“There is a very long end game here”; pg. 202), Herb lends his wise guidance to the neighbourhood and its new allies and mentors Adam in becoming a new leader.  His wealth of knowledge and astounding understanding of the human psyche makes Herb the ideal person to spearhead efforts in a crisis. But Herb is the real thing, not a superhero; he is a man with vulnerabilities, who can help make Adam realize what he himself has to offer.  Will to Survive is a coming-of-age story about Adam, just as it is for a post-apocalypse world that needs to recognize its weaknesses and play to its strengths in order for growth to happen.  Growing up can be scary but it can also be heartfelt and ultimately advancing.

Fight for Power: The Rule of Three, Book 2

by Eric Walters

Razorbill

978- 0-670-06706-0

352 pp.

Ages 12-18

January, 2015

When Eric Walters left readers at the end of The Rule of Three (Razorbill, 2014), the community of Eden Mills was managing rather well in the aftermath of a major power outage which affected all electrically-powered and digital devices. Under the leadership of Adam Daley's police captain mom and their elderly neighbour Herb Campbell who was possibly a former spy, and with the support of a multitude of residents with an assortment of skills, the community has organized into a relatively efficient entity with the mandate of survival.  They have food, water, communications, medical care, engineering, transportation, weapons, and a burgeoning societal structure that is learning to tame the chaos.  But, The Rule of Three left readers and community on the brink of an attack by the residents of a militarized compound, heading to the bridge that would lead to Eden Mills.

The attack is thwarted but, even though almost 500 persons from the compound are killed, leaving only about 100 left behind, the neighbourhood knows it is still vulnerable.  The decision to counter-attack, using intel from a captured compound soldier, Quinn, leads them to 47 imprisoned women and children whom Brett, cop and team leader, almost murdered in his zealousness to launch an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade).  Two dilemmas are revealed by that incident: the wisdom (or not) of bringing others into the community already taxed with limited resources, and Brett's bravado and insistence on offensive measures.  In fact, with reports of well-armed roving gangs becoming more violent, Brett and a group of nine other young men begin patrolling outside the walls of the neighbourhood on a nightly basis.

The realization that,

We need to do more than just survive.  We have to keep being human. (pg. 266)

becomes an important focus for Adam and others and a theme for Fight for Power.  Is living worth it if you know your actions have caused the death of others or are devoid of charity? How does power manifest itself:  in strength, in winning, in happiness, in surviving?  Eric Walters does a masterful job of depicting the chaos of this new world and those who fight for power. As the catch line on the book cover suggests, The enemy is everywhere, including within, so Herb is right when he declares over and over again, "Pray for the best, prepare for the worst." (pg. 127)

Fight for Power will take the reader from horrific chaos, to moments of calm, to occasional jubilation, and even to devastating loss.  I can only advise you to hold fast because the ride is a bumpy one but the journey that Eric Walters takes us on is worth it.

The Rule of Three

by Eric Walters

Razorbill

978-0-670-06705-3

405 pp.

Ages 12-18

January, 2014

While the Eden Mills of Eric Walters' The Rule of Three becomes a dystopian world, it is not a futuristic community under a totalitarian or an environmentally-degraded one.  It's the suburban neighbourhoods so many of us live in. The story begins in a high school with teens desperate to complete an assignment, a typical event in any high school in Canada or the US today.  But everything changes when the power goes out.  Not just the electricity that ultimately provides heat, light, water, sewage, refrigeration, and the countless amenities of our power-dependent lives, but also computerized devices like cell phones, lap tops, cars, etc. The unpleasantness of a dystopia is not immediately evident, but it's coming.

For Adam Daley and his family, the onset of the power outage doesn't create as much chaos as it does for the majority of the population.   Because Adam's 1970's Omega doesn't rely on fancy electronics, they have one of the few functioning vehicles around.  Mom is a police captain who works in the nearly precinct, so not only is she close to home, she commands some respect among those who may be acting less than nobly.  Dad is a pilot for Delta and was safely grounded in Chicago (not in the air) when all devices stopped working, and had been helping Adam, who is learning to fly, to build an ultralight plane in their garage.  Probably most significant is the close relationship the Daley family has with their elderly neighbour, Herb Campbell, whose former governmental job that took him around the world (Adam wonders if he was a spy) has him well-prepared for any disaster and skilled in diffusing dangerous situations.

As people become more desperate for food and water, and fearful for their families, Herb recognizes that, "We have to become increasingly more organized as the world becomes more disorganized." (pg. 141) In addition to patrols and checkpoints and a credit system to prevent further looting,  they conduct a census to determine what skills are already within the community.  Moreover, they convince the Petersons, the parents of the girl that Adam is crushing on, to transport all their farming equipment and animals to Eden Mills to share their knowledge of farming, building wells, etc. with them.

While occasional forays in the ultralight reveal much destruction and the establishment of other communities, the group works to build up their own community, establish better defense strategies, and attempt to deal with potential allies and enemies.  Sometimes mistakes, even fatal ones, are made as they learn what works and doesn't work, but they develop, amend and create solutions that might help them all survive yet another day.

The consummate author of engaging books for young readers, Eric Walters will have no difficulty grabbing fans of adventure, survival, dystopian or speculative fiction with The Rule of Three and its series. (There are sequels coming, as the last line in the book suggests.) Strangely, Eric Walters does not need to rely on supernatural elements or demand that readers completely deny their common sense.  Every and any reader could place themselves in the role of Adam, Lori, or another character, and recognize that their reactions are very honest and real.  There are the know-it-alls, the aggressors, the innocents, the ignorant, the leaders and the followers.  There are those you'll despise, those for whom you'll cheer and those you'll want as your neighbours.  Herb calls it well when he declares that, "Crisis doesn't change people; it reveals them." (pg. 325) In The Rule of Three, Eric Walters reveals us to ourselves in a time of crisis, albeit with names of Adam, Herb, Brett, Ernie, Howie and Stan, and we may not always like what we see.  Luckily, though The Rule of Three seems very real, it's only fiction. Right?