A review by lehmanemma
Ground Zero by Alan Gratz

adventurous emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Ground Zero was written by Alan Gratz and published on February 4th, 2021. This historical fiction novel follows two stories, exactly 18 years apart. On September 11th, 2001, Brandon went to work with his dad at the World Trade Center. While he is there, a plane hits the building and Brandon has to escape. In Afghanistan, September 2019, Reshima tries to protect her family and village from the war raging around her. The book follows these two stories simultaneously and wonderfully intertwines them at the end. This would be a great book for children ages 9 and up. In the classroom, this book would make a great read-aloud or book club book. It would be great to jumpstart a conversation on war or 9/11. At the end of the book, there are quite a few pages with more information about the events, which I think is very helpful. The only problem I had with the book was the pace. I think it was a bit slow and might lose the attention of unmotivated readers. <9/11> <war> <Afghanistan> <historical fiction>