Code Orange

Code Orange by Caroline B. Cooney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this for school and wow I've never liked a school book this much since The Giver. I almost always like school books (with the exception of Project Mulberry) but this was in a whole other category.

The Characters- There isn't very many characters but they were all cool. Mitty, the protagonist is your typical spoiled teenager who only cares about girls and having fun. He has a crush on a classmate named Olivia. She is the opposite of Mitty. She loves to learn and always tries her best. The last somewhat important character is Mitty's best friend (forgot his name). He was funny and always had Mitty's back.

The Romance- This book had a very lighthearted romance. It wasn't supposed to be very serious and the story was great without having it. It was just a sweet little detail that added to the story.

Setting- New York. I liked having him in New York a lot because being at the place 9/11 occurred makes the story even more meaningful.

The Story- Mitty is assigned a project in Biology. He has to research an infectious disease. Usually he wouldn't care about doing his work but if he doesn't he will be taken out of his advanced class. That's the only class he has with Olivia. With one weekend left Mitty knows he has to work but he sadly goes with his parents to their other house in the country. He starts to freak out. He needs to use books but there's no libraries around. He looks around the house and finds books that his mother brought home from work. Just his luck... He found a book on smallpox. Hurray! He opens the book and finds an envelope. He pours the envelope's contents into his hand. There's a bunch a scabs. Mitty then accidentally inhales some scab dust. He puts the scabs back in the envelope and continues with life. From there Mitty researches smallpox like crazy. He learns all the gruesome details. He begins to feel sick... smallpox sick. From here the story gets so intense. There's extreme paranoia and self sacrifice. Scariest of all there is some extremely disturbing bioterrorism.

The Conclusion- I have mixed feelings about this. I think he did the best thing he could given the situation but I didn't like the attitude he had after. It really blew my mind how he felt no empathy or regret whatsoever.

Writing Style- I wasn't a big fan of it at first but as I got used to it I liked it. It wasn't too descriptive and the pacing was good.

Misc.- I'm 14 and I just finished this book. I agree with some other people saying this book is a little too much for younger audiences. I handled it fine but I've read a lot more than most kids and I am more mature. The whole last quarter of it is just a little too much for some people. The ending even got me a little. It's just so dark and serious but it covers it up by making Mitty way to cheerful.

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