Waiting on Wednesday: Rootless by Chris Howard + Taken by Erin Bowman

Hi everyone! I know you've probably noticed that it's quiet here...but I'll make it up to you, lovelies.
For this week's Waiting on Wednesday, I have two books for you.

Rootless by Chris Howard
Publication Date: November 1, 2012
Published by: Scholastic Inc.


Seventeen-year-old Banyan is a tree builder. Using scrap metal and salvaged junk, he creates forests for rich patrons who seek a reprieve from the desolate landscape. Although Banyan’s never seen a real tree—they were destroyed more than a century ago—his father used to tell him stories about the Old World. But that was before his father was taken . . .

Everything changes when Banyan meets a mysterious woman with a strange tattoo—a clue to the whereabouts of the last living trees on earth, and he sets off across a wasteland from which few return. Those who make it past the pirates and poachers can’t escape the locusts—the locusts that now feed on human flesh.

But Banyan isn't the only one looking for the trees, and he’s running out of time. Unsure of whom to trust, he’s forced to make an uneasy alliance with Alpha, an alluring, dangerous pirate with an agenda of her own. As they race towards a promised land that might only be a myth, Banyan makes shocking discoveries about his family, his past, and how far people will go to bring back the trees.

In this dazzling debut, Howard presents a disturbing world with some uncanny similarities to our own. Like the forests Banyan seeks to rebuild, this visionary novel is both beautiful and haunting—full of stunning images that will take permanent root in your mind . . . and forever change the way you think about nature.


Why I Chose This:


Wow. I think I found out about this book last year (if my memory serves me right). I visited the author's site and was drawn to the metallic branches header there. A few months ago, I stumbled upon this cover and remembered that I was so freaking excited about this. It sort of reminds me of a recent animated movie...the one with no trees? By Dr. Seuss? Sometimes I tend to withdraw myself from action-packed dystopia to enjoy beautiful, haunting books. :)

Taken by Erin Bowman
Publication Date: April 16, 2013
Published by: Harper Teen


There are no men in Claysoot. There are boys—but every one of them vanishes at midnight on his eighteenth birthday. The ground shakes, the wind howls, a blinding light descends...and he’s gone.

They call it the Heist.

Gray Weathersby’s eighteenth birthday is mere months away, and he’s prepared to meet his fate–until he finds a strange note from his mother and starts to question everything he’s been raised to accept: the Council leaders and their obvious secrets. The Heist itself. And what lies beyond the Wall that surrounds Claysoot–a structure that no one can cross and survive. 

Climbing the Wall is suicide, but what comes after the Heist could be worse. Should he sit back and wait to be taken–or risk everything on the hope of the other side?

Why I Chose This:

The first three sentences got me. Why are they disappearing??? This sounds suspense, scary and thrilling. Sounds exactly like the kind of books that I love. But 2013? *cries*


What do you think? What books are you looking forward to?