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Dogs of the Deadlands

by Anthony McGowan, illustrated by Keith Robinson

Interest age: 9 to 11
Reading age: 10+

Published by Rock the Boat, 2022

  • Adventure
  • Around the world
  • Thriller

About this book

It’s April 1986 and, not far from the Chernobyl nuclear plant, a little girl can’t sleep. It’s her 7th birthday and today her greatest wish came true. The puppy she had always dreamed of is finally hers and she is overcome with excitement and love.

Her joy turns to heartbreak, however, when she is dragged from her bed in the middle of the night and evacuated to a safe place after a cataclysmic nuclear disaster: with her family but without her beloved puppy, Zoya.

In a land now abandoned by humans, the pets left behind must adapt or die. This is their story.

This gripping and unusual tale imagines how life might have evolved for the domestic animals forced to become wild in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster and the repercussions for their owners.

With ever-present threats from wolf, bear and lynx, much of the action is visceral and bloody, reflecting lives lived on the edge where life and death choices are a daily challenge.

Amidst the gore and trauma is a remarkable and intimate story of loyalty and love, resilience, survival and hope.

About the author

Anthony McGowan was born in Manchester in 1965. He went to school in Leeds. He has an M.Phil in philosophy and a PhD on the history of the concept of beauty. He has worked as a nightclub bouncer, civil servant, and Open University tutor in philosophy. He now lives in London. He is married to the fashion designer and novelist Rebecca Campbell. They have two children.

His debut thriller, Stag Hunt, was published in 2005 and a sequel, Mortal Coil, came out in 2005. In the same year, Random House published Hellbent, his first novel for teenagers, and a second young-adult book, Henry Tumour, was published in 2006. Henry Tumour won the Book Trust Teenage prize, the 2007 Catalyst Award, and has been shortlisted for several major awards.

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