Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: DEAD CITY, by James Ponti--and a giveaway!

I'm due to go back in the deadline cave any day (alas, alack) but in the meantime I've been taking advantage of having a *little* reading time. So once again, I have an MMGM!! (I... wouldn't get too used to this, though. My reading time is about to go the way of the dinosaurs. But I will do my best to always have links.)

BUT, before I get to that, I um... totally forgot to draw a winner for last week's MMGM giveaway of 33 MINUTES (it's been a bit since I did a giveaway, I guess I'm a bit rusty) SO, since it's better late than never, the winner is...

Heidi Grange!

*tosses confetti*  

If that's you, email me at SWMessenger (at) hotmail (dot) com with your mailing address and I will send you your prize.

Okay, now, back to today's awesome feature: DEAD CITY, by James Ponti, another book that was at the top of my middle grade TBR pile. 

Here's how the publisher describes it:

The Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins says this paranormal action-adventure “breathes new life into the zombie genre” and has “a terrific twist of an ending.”

Most kids have enough to deal with between school, homework, extracurricular activities, and friends, but Molly Bigelow has something else on her list: hunting zombies. By day, Molly attends MIST—the Metropolitan Institute of Science and Technology—but outside the classroom she’s busy dealing with the undead. Because not only do zombies exist, they’re everywhere, and it’s her job to help police them and keep the peace. Sure, she’d like to be a regular kid, but given that her mother was the most revered (or feared, depending on your perspective) zombie hunter in the history of New York City, “regular” just isn’t possible. Molly’s got some legendary footsteps to follow—and some undeadly consequences if she fails.

I'm not *really* sure I need to add anything else to this feature. I mean, THIS BOOK IS BLURBED BY SUZANNE COLLINS!!! And in case you're wondering, here's the full blurb:

In Dead City, James Ponti cleverly weaves Manhattan history into an action-packed plot to breathe new life into the zombie genre. Brainy, funny, and socially baffled Molly Bigelow makes for an irresistible narrator as she drives the story to a terrific twist of an ending. If I’d had the next installment, I’d have dived right in.—Suzanne Collins, author of THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy

I mean, if THAT doesn't convince you, I don't know what does. BUT, since it makes for a rather lame feature to simply paste in a blurb and leave it at that, I'll TRY to add something useful. So I'll add this: DEAD CITY was one of those rare books that hooked me from the very first page. Pretty much the very first sentence.

A lot of books try to pull that off. But most of the time I feel like I have to sort of, "give a book a chapter or two" before I can really decide if I'm liking it. Not the case with DEAD CITY. I loved Molly's voice from the minute I met her. I love the hilarious chapter titles. I love the world/mythology Ponti created--and that's saying a lot because *whispers* I'm... not necessarily a huge zombie fan. 

*ducks*

It's not that I hate zombies. I just tend to find the stories a bit... repetitive. I mean, they're undead. There's not a lot you can do with them besides have them chase down the main character. And yet, Ponti found a way to make that all feel fresh. He has levels of zombies--some even fit to live normal lives among us (it's the level 3s you have to be scared of). And when you add his unique take to the hilarious voice of his main character, well... it's just a combination that's made of win. Just the right amount of tension / action but still totally middle grade appropriate. In MY opinion at least. And I'm giving away a copy, so one lucky winner can read and decide for themselves.

If you would like to enter, leave a comment on this post by 11:59 pm pacific time on Saturday, January 19th. I'll draw one random winner and post their names on Sunday, January 20h (and I'll try to actually remember this time!) International entries welcome!

For more awesome middle grade recommendations, check out these other MMGMs floating around the blogosphere.*

- Barbara Watson is highlighting IRON HEARTED VIOLET. Click HERE to see what she thought.  

- Sue Heavenrich is caught up in HIS-S-S. Click HERE to see why. 

- Danika Dinsmore is sharing some of her friends' and family's favorite classic middle grade reads. Click HERE to see what they are. 

- Akossiwa Ketoglio is cheering for CINDERELLA SMITH. Click HERE to see her feature.  

- Annie McMahon is rooting for TUA AND THE ELEPHANT. Click HERE to see her thoughts. 

- Temre Beltz is wondering at WONDER. Click HERE for her review. 

- Deb Marshall has her Cybill's reading round-up #2. Click HERE for all the fun book features.   

- Andrea Mack is gushing about THE TIFFIN. Click HERE for her review.   

- Susan Olson is stunned by THE VOLCANO DISASTER. Click HERE to see why.  

- Dorine White is spotlighting SHIELD MAIDEN. Click HERE to read what she thought.

- Brennan and Meyrick Murphy are struck with wonder at WONDERSTRUCK. Click HERE to see what these two middle grade readers thought of it.  

- Flash, the Feline Extraordinaire, (and Professional Mews to Cindy Strandvold) recommends SMALL AS AN ELEPHANT. Click HERE to see what that's all about.  

- Heidi Grange is amazed by STARRY RIVER OF THE SKY. Click HERE to see her review. 

- Rosi Hollinbeck is raving about AFTER ELI--and she's got a GIVEAWAY! Click HERE for all the fun!  

- Laurisa White Reyes has a pretty epic giveaway going on--with LOTS of books. Click HERE to see what that's all about! 

- Janet Smart joins the MMGM fun with a feature on MISSING MAY. Click HERE for her thoughts.   

- Michelle Isenhoff is always part of the MMGM fun. Click HERE to see what she's talking about today.  

 - Joanne Fritz always has an MMGM for you. Click HERE to see what she's talking about this week.    

- The Mundie Moms are always part of the MMGM fun (YAY!). Click HERE to see their newest recommendations. And if you aren't also following their Mundie Kids site, get thee over THERE and check out all the awesome!    

- The lovely Shannon O'Donnell always has an MMGM ready for you! Click HERE to see what she's featuring this week!

- Karen Yingling also always has some awesome MMGM recommendations for you. Click HERE to which ones she picked this time!  

- Pam Torres always has an MMGM up on her blog. Click HERE to see what she's spotlighting this week.    

If you would like to join in the MMGM fun, all you have to do is blog about a middle grade book you love (contests, author interviews and whatnot also count--but are most definitely not required) and email me the title of the book you're featuring and a link to your blog at SWMessenger (at) hotmail (dot) com. (Make sure you put MMGM or Marvelous Middle Grade Monday in the subject line so I see it)

NOTE: I used to not have a cut-off time for adding links to the post, but with how insane my schedule is right now, if you don't email me by Sunday evening (usually around 11pm PST is when I put the links together) I can't guarantee I'll have a chance to add you. BUT, you are welcome to add your link in the comments on this post so people can find you!

*Please note: these posts are not a reflection of my own opinions on the books featured. Each blogger is responsible for their own MMGM content and I do not pre-screen posts ahead of time, nor do I control what books they choose. I simply assemble the list based on the links that are emailed to me ahead of time.