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The Elephant Mountains
by
Scott Ely
An unprecedented series of hurricanes has swollen the Mississippi River to unheard-of levels and is threatening to put New Orleans and most of the low-lying areas of the South under water. Fifteen-year-old Stephen is spending the summer with his father near a small town north of Lake Pontchartrain when another powerful hurricane arrives and the levees on the Mississippi Ri...more
Hardcover, 216 pages
Published
October 1st 2011
by Orca Book Publishers
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A series of hurricanes as strong as Katrina has cataclysmically swamped the low lying parts of Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama and swollen the Mississippi until it breaks its banks and floods the upper Mississippi Delta. Most of New Orleans is underwater, and 15 year old Stephen, staying for the summer with his father near a small bayou town, is totally cut off from his socialite mother and life in the city. When Stephen’s father is killed and he is forced to set off in a small boat...more
This novel was so strange. Yes, I realize that it was written for a young teen audience, but the language still seemed too awkward and simplistic given the dark subject material being discussed. I read the whole thing in one two hour sitting, and honestly, I kind of wish I could get those two hours of my life back. It's not that the storyline wasn't interesting; it had potential to be a great, engaging tale, however, none of the characters were developed enough for the reader to become emotional...more
This book initially attracted me because the dystopian-esque setting was not brought about by humans in any attempt to create some utopian society, but rather, it was brought about by nature. There is something scary about nature, how powerfully and unexpectedly it can annihilate thousands of life in mere minutes. This is a story about survival, when all the odds are against you.
Stephen was sent to live with his survivalist father for the summer. Little did he know this would be the summer that...more
Stephen was sent to live with his survivalist father for the summer. Little did he know this would be the summer that...more
This dystopian novel covers the lives of those in the south who are affected by rising waters and repeated hits by hurricanes. This was a realistic look at what life would be like when global warming spins out of control. Stephen went to live with his father, near New Orleans, after his mother was going to send him to military school. But after the storms hit, he and his father must fight for survival against the rising waters. Then his father is killed and Stephen is left to look for higher gro...more
One of the books that I read this summer was The Elephant Mountains, by Scott Ely. I think that this book is not only a story of survival, but a message to whoever reads it. The Elephant Mountains, is about the outcome of global warming and how people cope and survive with the effects. Stephen, after realizing his father’s death, sets out to find his mother on higher ground. After meeting a girl quite older than him, he invites her on his journey. After days of overlooking dead bodies and debris...more
This book is set in New Orleans and the surrounding areas, which is near where I am from, so I was intrigued by the book. The post-apocalyptic story line is reminiscent of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, but on a grander scale. The language, the culture, the people -- all are true to the New Orleans area.
Right away I was struck by the simplistic nature of the writing. This is Scott Ely's first book in the Young Adult genre, which I could easily guess from what the writing lacked. One major t...more
Right away I was struck by the simplistic nature of the writing. This is Scott Ely's first book in the Young Adult genre, which I could easily guess from what the writing lacked. One major t...more
This book was interesting and I did find it entertaining. It had it's ups and downs as most stories do, but, overall was worth the read.
It's a rather short work aimed at a young adult crowd. With the brevity of the book, a lot of the characters aren't developed much and don't have a lot of depth. The main characters are developed more and a lot of their actions are ones that you can sympathize with. I did like how the author showed the polar opposites of how human nature exists in different indi...more
It's a rather short work aimed at a young adult crowd. With the brevity of the book, a lot of the characters aren't developed much and don't have a lot of depth. The main characters are developed more and a lot of their actions are ones that you can sympathize with. I did like how the author showed the polar opposites of how human nature exists in different indi...more
This book is straightforward and often brutally simple in its approach, yet somehow manages to convey some sense of underlying depth at times. When several southern states experience a series of hurricanes, the water overtakes the low lying areas and many people disregard any semblance of humanity in the name of survival. The fifteen year old protagonist, Stephen, who is living with his father in Louisiana when this takes place, is forced to grow up very quickly in the midst of the surrounding c...more
Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
My Summary: Stephen was raised by his mother - a flighty socialite who has a new man in her bed every other week. Tired of living the life his mother has planned for him, Stephen finds freedom when he goes to visit his father in New Orleans. Over the course of the summer, Stephen's father teaches him a wide variety of survival skills; Stephen wishes he could remain with his father forever, but his m...more
My Summary: Stephen was raised by his mother - a flighty socialite who has a new man in her bed every other week. Tired of living the life his mother has planned for him, Stephen finds freedom when he goes to visit his father in New Orleans. Over the course of the summer, Stephen's father teaches him a wide variety of survival skills; Stephen wishes he could remain with his father forever, but his m...more
This was hard to read. It didn't take long, really - it's a pretty short book, for which I was very glad, but for someone from the area, Hurricane Katrina can be a touchy subject. This is definitely something I will only read once, but again, it's a little too close to home.
Stephen, our main character, is living in the bayou with his father (his mother is in New Orleans) when Hurricane Katrina hits. His father is a bit of a survivalist, and so their home survives the hurricane, and between their...more
Stephen, our main character, is living in the bayou with his father (his mother is in New Orleans) when Hurricane Katrina hits. His father is a bit of a survivalist, and so their home survives the hurricane, and between their...more
An interesting plotline, but I think the book failed to live up to the promise. I love dystopian/survival literature. I think it has to do with my love of zombies. But really any survival stories are right up my alley. I started this book seeing the scary potential future. What Ely predicts could happen. Hurricanes and global warming could rise the waters enough to swallow a lot of the low-lying southern lands. New Orleans would be toast. Florida would disappear. And the rest would be under vary...more
The United States is plummeted with one hurricane after another, global warming is reshaping the world.
15 yr old Stephen is left alone to fend for himself,against those who will kill for food and supplies.
We follow him as he makes he's journey first toward New Orleans only to find it covered by water, to the rockies where the radio says the mountains are turning to jungles.
This was a fairly good read and short enough, it was a tale of coming of age through troubled times.
15 yr old Stephen is left alone to fend for himself,against those who will kill for food and supplies.
We follow him as he makes he's journey first toward New Orleans only to find it covered by water, to the rockies where the radio says the mountains are turning to jungles.
This was a fairly good read and short enough, it was a tale of coming of age through troubled times.
I'm not entirely sold on this book being labeled a "young adult" novel. It seemed a lot heavier and more adult than most, like Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," but without the intensity or moral questions. Honestly, this book tracks like the sludge of the swamps it takes place in. A curious spin on the (semi)destruction of "the world" but with little development, characters I had no rooting interest in, and unrealistic motives.
This book was terrible. Terrible. I appreciate LibraryThing for selecting me as a winner, but in my opinion this book was completely unreadable. I can't believe this guy is a writing professor at a university. No, just no. Please do yourself a favor and stay far, far away from this one.
Some of the things that were wrong with it:
~No dialogue
~Detached & amateurish writing style
~No contractions whatsoever
No one should be forced to read this. And I won't read something I don't enjoy.
Some of the things that were wrong with it:
~No dialogue
~Detached & amateurish writing style
~No contractions whatsoever
No one should be forced to read this. And I won't read something I don't enjoy.
Nothing actually happens to the characters (besides the main character discovering sex) in terms of growth or development, but it was at least a quick interesting little read.
Grim, fast-paced story about a fifteen-year-old trying to survive in a plausible near future of global warming, lawlessness, and general anarchy.
Great short YA apocalyptic survivor story set in New Orleans/swampy surrounds. The south has been hit by hurricane after hurricane, the levees are breaking, everywhere is flooded, and a fifteen year old boy and a twenty year old girl team up together and wander about in boats looking for the boy's mother.
I'm not usually a big reader of YA but this caught my eye, mostly cause I'll read anything set in New Orleans. This was brutal, lots of death, not a pretty whitewashed teenage version of an apo...more
I'm not usually a big reader of YA but this caught my eye, mostly cause I'll read anything set in New Orleans. This was brutal, lots of death, not a pretty whitewashed teenage version of an apo...more
This book was slow at best and bluntly brutal at worst. It never seemed to really pick up and just dragged along.
The average dystopian book. It was very interesting, but a little too much gore for me.
Boy book, but not for reluctant readers. Stephen seemed older than his supposed 15 years.
Ladder with Will Hobbs books.
Ladder with Will Hobbs books.
Great premise. The book fell short of what it could have been. At first I thought i didn't like it because of all of the death, but then I realized the author spent his whole time "telling" me what was going on instead of "showing" me. I just wish it was better.
Somewhat slowgoing at times but still a good read, scarily realistic.
May 11, 2013
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Mar 20, 2013
Liz Goetsch
marked it as to-read
Mar 19, 2013
Madeleine
marked it as to-read
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