Rootless - Hardcover

Howard, Chris

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0545387892 ISBN 13: 9780545387897

Publisher: Scholastic Inc., 2012

Synopsis

"There's a brilliant madness to this deadly post-apocalyptic world, filled with complex characters, shifting loyalties, and layers of mystery... a nonstop adventure" - Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
Mad Max meets Lord of the Rings in this first installment of the Rootless trilogy . . .
17-year-old Banyan is a tree builder. Using salvaged scrap metal, he creates forests for rich patrons who seek a reprieve from the desolate landscape. Although Banyan's never seen a real tree, his missing father used to tell him stories about the way they grew in the old world . . . before they were destroyed by the plagues of locusts that now feed on human flesh.
When Banyan meets a mysterious woman with a strange tattoo that offers a clue to the whereabouts of the last living trees, he sets off across a wasteland full of desert pirates, underground poachers and the agents of a sinister corporation that controls the last remaining source of food. 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.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

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 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 uncanny similarities to our own. Like the forests Banyan seeks to rebuild, this visionary novel is both beautiful and haunting--full of images that will take permanent root in your mind . . . and forever change the way you think about nature.

From the Back Cover:

"There aren't many books left. People burned most of them to keep warm during the Darkness. And after the Darkness, there were no new books because there was no more paper.

The locusts had come.

And there were no more trees."

About this edition

• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0545387892
• ISBN 13: 9780545387897
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336