After the world finally destroyed itself, a lone boy woke up from a survival pod to find the remnants. With the company of a broken-down robot he names Click and a genetically modified mammoth he names Protein, Fisher begins his journey to find another human being and start the world over in Greg van Eekhout’s young adult science fiction story – The Boy at the End of World.

Similar to Elizabeth Speare’s coming of age tale of a Native American boy in Sign of the Beaver, van Eekhout has his hero, Fisher, facing the wilderness, living off the land, and overcoming adversity. In this futuristic setting, however, some of the animals have morphed into mechanical monsters and the land is renewing itself from the devastation of wars, abuse, and possibly nuclear after effects.

Unlike Cormac McCarthy’s depressing The Road, van Eekhoot offers hope for the future and the tools to survive. Fisher, programmed with instincts for survival and the knowledge of an experienced fisherman, with the help of his companions, overcomes obstacles and fights off potential threats of marauding computerized insects and machines. In the end, the world has a chance for a new start with its hopeful, talented, and moral new Adam.

Both boys and girls will enjoy the adventures, and adults will recognize the warnings of what the world could become if they don’t change their ways. The Boy at the End of the Word is well a written and thoughtful yet thrilling story.