Personal Response:
Canyonis an interesting sequel in the Travelerseries. The book has plenty of action. For example, Battle took down the Cartel’s men outside Lubbock like they were fish in a barrel. They even outnumber Battle by at least 50 times. The book has a good amount of sentimental parts to contrast the carnage. After Battle avoids death through multiple shootouts while holding Buck, a doctor runs into Battle and they go into the doctor’s house. The doctor patches up Buck and the doctor has the men spend the night in his house. Battle learns about the doctor’s family and how much of a close-knit family the doctor has. Buck is the sergeant Battle saves after Buck suffers injuries from an IED.
Plot:
Canyon has an intriguing plot. The book occurs five years after the Scourge wipes out most of humanity’s population. The Scourge is a disease with pneumonia-like symptoms. The main protagonist, Marcus Batlle, is a soldier before the Scourge happens. The book incorporates flashbacks, from Marcu’s point of view, to before the Scourge happens. After the Scourge occurs, Battle takes his family and hides out in Texas. His wife and son pass away from the Scourge. The deaths of the two haunt Battle. After their deaths, Battle promises a woman, Lola, to help find her son. The son’s name is Wesson. Battle must fight the Cartel to get Wesson back. The Cartel is formed directly after the Scourge occurs. A group of drug lords, gangs, and criminals combine their forces to overtake a weakened U.S. government. The United States government agrees to concede Texas to the Cartel. Later, the Cartel lets the U.S. government build a wall around Texas.
Characterization:
In the beginning, Battle is not personable to Pico or Lola. He is a by-the-book type of person due to his military background. As the story progresses, Battle starts to like Lola and he thinks with more emotion; however, his efficiency in battle is always superb.
Cyrus Skinner is a satisfying character to analyze. As a captain in the Cartel, Skinner is seen as a cold and unstoppable person. As Battle proves to be a thorn in Skinner’s side, Skinner becomes afraid and looks less unstoppable. For the first time, Skinner realizes he can not solve a problem and it shows.
Impacts of Setting:
The book takes place in the late 2030s in the present area of Texas. A big epidemic is mentioned in the book and, as a result, modern-day equipment is mentioned throughout the book. Cell-phones, the internet, and other common modern-day commodities are scarce. Austin and Lubbock are cities mentioned in the book. The setting has influence over the plot. The Texas Tech Stadium in Lubbock is used as a fighting arena for the Cartel. After Battle and the rest of the group survive the arena, they have to trek to a canyon. Due to the lack of vegetation, there is a threat of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and sunburn.
Theme:
Perseverance is a common theme in the book and helps drive the plot. Battle spends days carrying Buck to safety. He survives gunfights and disease doing so. He perseveres in a situation that a normal person simply cannot. Even though the situation seems bleak, Wesson finds a way to persevere. Wesson is Lola’s son. He survives days of captivity and oppression and finally reunites with his mother
Recommendation:
I recommend this book to males ages 12-18. Males would appreciate this book more because of the large amount of action. Anyone younger than 12 would have a hard time comprehending this book because the vocabulary is too complex for that age range. People older than 18 would think this book is under their reading level and think it is childish.