Wanderers By Chuck Wendig was released summer of last year (2019)
It’s tough to pinpoint the genre of a book these days because most books can be categorized multiple ways. Amazon has it listed as Thriller & Suspense Action Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic Science Fiction, and Mystery Action & Adventure. I would agree with all of these categories. If someone said it was a medical thriller I’d probably say “sure, why not?” [shrugs]. But I think you get the idea. It’s for sure science fiction. There is for sure action, suspense, mystery, drama and thrills. If you like that sort of think then you’re really going to like this book.
The eye-catching book description on amazon (the one you have to click “read more” to completely see) reads:
“A decadent rock star. A deeply religious radio host. A disgraced scientist. And a teenage girl who may be the world’s last hope. From the mind of Chuck Wendig comes “a magnum opus . . . a story about survival that’s not just about you and me, but all of us, together” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).
Straight from the Amazon Book Description
NOMINATED FOR THE BRAM STOKER AWARD • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Washington Post • NPR • The Guardian • Kirkus Reviews • Publishers Weekly • Library Journal • Polygon
Shana wakes up one morning to discover her little sister in the grip of a strange malady. She appears to be sleepwalking. She cannot talk and cannot be woken up. And she is heading with inexorable determination to a destination that only she knows. But Shana and her sister are not alone. Soon they are joined by a flock of sleepwalkers from across America, on the same mysterious journey. And like Shana, there are other “shepherds” who follow the flock to protect their friends and family on the long dark road ahead.
For as the sleepwalking phenomenon awakens terror and violence in America, the real danger may not be the epidemic but the fear of it. With society collapsing all around them—and an ultraviolent militia threatening to exterminate them—the fate of the sleepwalkers depends on unraveling the mystery behind the epidemic. The terrifying secret will either tear the nation apart—or bring the survivors together to remake a shattered world.”
So right away you get a good glimpse at what you’re in for if you decide to crack this behemoth open and take a solid peak.
I’m going to go with a full disclaimer here and let you know that I didn’t read the synopsis before I grabbed my copy. I actually picked it after being exposed to it in a couple of different ways:
First, I stumbled on the cover when I was looking at cover art for books that shared genre tags with Due North. I liked it so I snagged it as a reference for my book artist. You’ve got to admit, it’s a snappy cover. You can’t miss the title, it’s got a real Midwestern vibe (complete with water tower) and a mysterious silhouette walking on an empty road.
If you look a little closer the cover also hints at the state of the world. The water tower has a frayed American flag (symbolic much?), is covered in weeds, and is likely going to fall soon seeing as the supports are broken. The emptiness also lends to the feel. Before March of 2020 it was hard to find empty spaces and roads.
I liked it right away, but I didn’t really have any intention of reading it. I was busy editing my own novel and looking for more covers, but it stuck with me.
A few months later I saw a twitter post from someone reading Wanderers. The gist of it was that it was taking a long time to get through the book because [life, etc] were very distracting. But, the post suggested that it was okay that it was taking forever because reading the book was so dang rewarding. (Talk about a glowing review!!)
I should have surmised from the post that the book was big, but I didn’t. I’ve been there—in that phase of life where it feels like a real victory to read 5 sentences before the next big thing happens and I forget about reading for the next two days. In fact, I’ve spent most of the last decade sipping at books rather than gulping because I’m always busy.
Miraculously, I’ve managed to read quite a few books this way. By getting in 5 sentences here and a page there I’ve consumed more than a hundred books in the last 5 years (another disclaimer—I actually stopped counting when I reached 100 in my recently read, so I have no idea how many more than 100 I’ve actually read). That may not be a lot to some, but I feel pretty good about it. ß This is my official endorsement of sipping books if you feel like you’re too busy to read.
Now back to Wanderers…
Have I mentioned it’s a long book? I did, didn’t I. It’s big. If you do a quick internet search of the average length of a book the first answer that pops up is about 300-400 pages, or 80,000-100,000 words. It feels right too, seeing as I’ve held a lot of books in my hands and scrolled through a lot of ebook content. (And this answer can be confirmed by actual data that analyzes the book length of not just recent books, but huge libraries of past and present books as well.)
There are exceptions to this rule, of course. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is 257,045 words. A Game of Thrones is 298,000 words, The Fellowship of the Ring comes in at 187,790 words and by Chuck Wendig’s own admission Wanderers comes in at 280,000 words.
That’s 800 pages.
But before you shy away from cracking it open because it’s big… c’mon, be honest with me. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was a breeze to read through, wasn’t it? You can do this!
What should you expect if you decide to read Wanderers:
First things first: This book meanders. The first few bits don’t get to the monkey (but you do get to learn about some other, really interesting and compelling wildlife). Then, once the plot is really rolling there’s an aside to another story that doesn’t seem like it fits into the major plot.
But have no fear!
Because while you’re reading this wandering plot, with stories that slowly twist and turn until they’re tightly wound together, you’re really being treated.
The writing is top-notch. It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that had such a pleasing narrative. I regularly found myself smiling at little descriptions and turns of phrases. Lots of books get the job done with writing that’s just that—writing. Wendig both gets it done and treats you to a pleasant brain massage done by well-put-together words.
It’s exciting: Even the parts that don’t make sense at first are interesting. The action is done well, but not overdone, and the mystery is just enough to keep you guessing without getting bored while you wait for the big reveal.
The big reveals are great: When the book finally gives you the ah-ha! moments you know are coming, they don’t disappoint. Some I guessed and some caught me completely by surprise. It’s a nice mix.
The book has some dark moments: I’m going to level with you—Wanderers is not always a rosy story. Tough things happen. A part or two were hard for me to read. I’d like to say that it’s because I’m the sensitive sort and need some hand holding when hard things happen to well-developed characters, but I think most people are going to have a hard time at least once or twice in the story.
The reason is twofold: First, reading about violence, assault, and injustice is just plain hard. I particularly struggle with injustice. It hurts my soul. Second, when a character, likable or not, is well developed, they feel real. It’s much harder to witness (by virtue of words) a difficult thing happening to a character that feels real. This happens more than once.
But you’re probably going to be okay: Did you watch Game of Thrones? Seeing as HBO predicts that about 32.8 million people watched, there’s a good chance the answer is yes. GOT is way worse when it comes to hard things, and the most talked about thing when it comes to the show isn’t the violence or injustice—it’s the bad ending. Which means that in the end people were pretty okay with the hard things.
Basically, I’m strongly encouraging you to give it a shot.
Maybe you haven’t heard of Wanderers until this very post. I know that’s not exactly the most likely thing in the world, since Wendig is a New York Times bestseller, but let’s entertain the notion that this book hasn’t been on your radar.
It should be.
- If you’re scouring Netflix for the latest apocalypse release.
- If you can’t get enough zeitgeist.
- If you like action and scifi anyway.
- If you have 5 minutes extra in your day.
Give it a shot. You can hold me accountable if it isn’t for you. We’ll talk about it. Maybe over tea or coffee. If you’re really upset, maybe I’ll get out the bourbon, but let’s face it—you probably won’t be.
In the meantime, let me know what other genre-specific things you’re interested in? Something you want me to review? I want to hear from you!