The Vanishing

Last on Earth Series #1

by Marilyn Kaye

Twenty-five teenagers, members of a Madison High geometry class, emerge from their windowless basement classroom to discover that they are the sole survivors of a holocaust that has destroyed all human life on Earth. Original.

Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult

186 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1998

About the author

I was born in New Britain, Connecticut, and grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. I also spent a year (5th grade) in Montgomery, Alabama, and a year in Ann Arbor, Michigan(8th grade). As a child, I always wanted to be a writer, but I had lots of other ambitions too. I wanted to be a teacher, a librarian, a movie star, the president of the United States, and a ballerina.

I didn't achieve all my goals. I never became a movie star, the president of the U.S., or a ballerina. But I've been a teacher and a librarian and most of all, a writer. I've been writing for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I always kept a diary. I wrote poems, stories, plays, songs and lots of letters. Writing wasn't easy for me, but it felt natural and right.

I've always read a lot, too. I was an English major at Emory University (I love Shakespeare), and I also received a master's degree in library science at Emory. I earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Chicago, and I taught children's and teen literature at St. John's University in New York for over 20 years. Now, I'm a full-time writer, living in Paris, France - the most beautiful city in the world.

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nostalgia read with a nostalgia rating. I read this series as a child, and it really captured my imagination. When I went to museums and saw paintings that really spoke to me, I put them into a folder in my mind palace labeled "To Hang on the Wall of My Hotel Room ala Jake and Ashley, in Case The Vanishing Happens."

You could argue it's not especially original or complex, but it suited me just fine as a kid. I felt a lot more represented by this group of well-meaning, intelligent, and curious children than, say, the snot-nosed losers of The Lord of the Flies. Reading it as an adult refreshed my respect for the characterizations. There's a deceptive simplicity to characters like Jake, Donna, and Travis that made me feel more prepared to meet people like this as I grew older. And met them I have!

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

hmmm. not very good. i'm in a teen resources class this semester and am doing research on teen sci-fi. i love a good sci-fi book, especially a post-apocalyptic one like this one. but it's not written very well. definetly for teens... probably preteens.
i don't hate it, but there are better sci-fi books out there!

[Cherisse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even in the story, the characters reference LORD OF THE FLIES. Rather abrupt ending, though understandable since it is the first in a trilogy.

The kids in 5th period geometry are the only ones left on earth, and must deal with their new lives. Gradually, one kid becomes a dictator and gathers the bullies as a police force around him, while another group forms a rebel group.

[Gina · Rating 2 out of 5]

A class full of teens find themselves the only inhabitants in NYC. Everyone else has disappeared.

[Maria Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sufroooooo!!! este es el primer libro de una trilogía excelente ... el problema es que no siguieron publicando los libros en español, y ahora? nunca sabré como termina D: