Book News

A great review of Follow The River came out in both the Anchorage Daily News and the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. Below are a couple of snippets from the review. You can read the full review here:

–Greci has the skills to show young readers that, despite our conflicts, we all have shared humanity. It’s a much needed message.–David James, Anchorage Daily News

–Young readers are who Greci is targeting. As an educator, he’s aware of the fact that many boys in upper primary grades tend to quit reading altogether….Greci accomplishes this task by keeping the action moving swiftly. Chapters are brief, and most end in cliffhangers that will keep young readers turning pages. Fortunately, with Alaska, Greci has a landscape that can kill people in any number of ways. And from one cliffhanger to the next, Greci manages to rope in quite a few of them. His ability to find unique new dangers with each book is impressive–David James, Anchorage Daily News

Also, The Wild Lands was included in a list of nine Young Adult Thrillers Get Your Heart Pounding on the CrimeReads website.

The four novels I’ve published in my writing career thus far are all written with the intention of engaging reluctant readers. That said, I sincerely hope that avid readers will enjoy them too. I strive to write page-turners that have depth and complexity, and while the external survival plots move forward, my hope is that the internal journeys of the characters are just as compelling.

Paul Greci is the author of The Wild Lands (Macmillan 2019) and Surviving Bear Island (Move Books 2015), a 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection and a 2016 Scholastic Reading Club Selection, Hostile Territory (Macmillan 2020), an Anchorage Daily News Best Book of 2020, and Follow the River (Move Books 2021), a 2021 Junior Library Guild Selection. You can order all of Paul’s books here.

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Follow The River: A Number #1 new release

My middle grade novel, Follow the River is a Number #1 new release on Amazon in the Children’s Water Sports Category. It comes out in March 2020.

From the jacketflap: When Billy and his dad are injured, Tom summons the courage to get back on the water to save them. This time, he must travel in a rickety old homemade canoe through the Alaska wilderness to get help. But it’s not just the canoe and the terrain he has to worry about—he’s surrounded by adversaries. Are his skills enough to fight them off or will his journey be cut short and Billy and his father left stranded?

Paul Greci is the author of The Wild Lands (Macmillan 2019) and Surviving Bear Island (Move Books 2015), a 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection and a 2016 Scholastic Reading Club Selection. Forthcoming is Follow the River (Move Books March 2020) and Hostile Territory (Macmillan Jan. 2020). You can order all of Paul’s books here.

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The Wild Lands: Reviews

My novel, The Wild Lands publishes on Jan. 29, 2019 (Macmillan). It’s received some great praise and reviews:

“This fast-paced book contains all the hallmarks of a classic wilderness survival novel (deadly terrain, vicious predators, literal cliff-hangers) and the best of the postapocalyptic genre … The author’s decades of Alaskan wilderness experience is evident throughout … A great high-stakes wilderness survival tale.” —School Library Journal

“This rugged survival story places a group of teens in a dark, burned-out post-apocalyptic nightmare. Your heart will pound for them as they face terrible dangers and impossible odds. Gripping, vivid, and haunting!” — Emmy Laybourne, international bestselling author of the Monument 14 trilogy

“A compelling story that wouldn’t let me stop reading. Greci has created both a frightening landscape and characters you believe in and want to survive it.” — Eric Walters, author of bestselling Rule of Three series

“A brutal vision of things to come. Greci delivers an apocalyptic odyssey that’s honest, relentless, and backed by his first-hand knowledge of the wilderness.” — Lex Thomas, author of the Quarantine series

“Heart-racing… A rugged wilderness lover’s post-disaster survivalist tale.” ―Kirkus Review

“With an omnipresent sense of horror reminiscent of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, [The Wild Lands] is…a testament to Greci’s skill in evoking such a believable dystopian setting. Heart-thumping suspense for readers who liked Rick Yancey’s The 5th Wave.”
–Booklist

“Raw and accessible. Offering hints of Hatchet with markedly more manmade danger.” ―Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

“The themes of teamwork, choice and free will are incredibly well done … an intense and thrilling ride.” ―TeenReads.com

You can order The Wild Lands right now for a big discount (30 % off).

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Surviving Bear Island School Visit

I had a wonderful author visit today at Barnette Magnet School in Fairbanks, Alaska. One hundred 7th and 8th grade students had read Surviving Bear Island. I was met at the door by two students who escorted me to their “old library” which is a warm open space. For the next hour I stood and answered questions from a very polite, engaged and interesting group of students. Every student had a journal to take notes. Because of privacy guidelines I can’t post photos of the students but here is one of me and Heidi Imhof, one of the teachers that used Surviving Bear Island in her classroom.

I’m always amazed at the insights students have and today was no exception. When they asked me how and why I started writing fiction, I shared with them that when I worked in an alternative school and was designing and doing creative writing assignments with my struggling readers and writers, I discovered that I liked writing stories so if it weren’t for my students I may have never undertaken fiction writing.

Students teach teachers as much or more as teachers teach students. I’m still a teacher and I still continually learn about life from my students.

 

We got to talk a little bit about my next book: The Wild Lands (Macmillan 2019), which comes out in January. It’s another Alaska survival story which you can read about on my website.

Right now it is a screaming pre-order deal on Amazon for $12.32. The regular price is $17.99!! Surviving Bear Island is now out in paperback for $6.95.

 

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Praise for The Wild Lands: A YA Thriller

I’m  thrilled that quotes from authors Emmy Laybourne, Eric Walters, and Lex Thomas will be on the back cover of my young adult novel The Wild Lands (Macmillan January 2019). You can pre-order it now.

“This rugged survival story places a group of teens in a dark, burned-out post-apocalyptic nightmare. Your heart will pound for them as they face terrible dangers and impossible odds. Gripping, vivid, and haunting!” — Emmy Laybourne, international bestselling author of the Monument 14 trilogy

“A compelling story that wouldn’t let me stop reading. Greci has created both a frightening landscape and characters you believe in and want to survive it.” — Eric Walters, author of bestselling Rule of Three series

“A brutal vision of things to come. Greci delivers an apocalyptic odyssey that’s honest, relentless, and backed by his first-hand knowledge of the wilderness.” — Lex Thomas, author of the Quarantine series

 

Paul Greci is the author of Surviving Bear Island, a 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection and a 2016 Scholastic Reading Club Selection. Forthcoming is Follow the River, a sequel to Surviving Bear Island published by Move Books. In January 2019, Paul’s first young adult novel, The Wild Lands will be published by Macmillan.

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