Static #1 (Flight 29 Down) by DJ MacHale and Stan Rogow

My bags are there.  I just know it.

Bad news:  The airline "misplaced" two of our four bags today. 
Worse news:  I will be wearing contacts 24/7 until our bags are located.
Good news:  I don't have to do laundry tonight.
Better news:  I have time to write and post this review on schedule.

Now that all of that is out of the way, let me get straight to the review.  And I hope that I am not causing too much of a problem by reviewing this book/series of books (yes, we are recommending another one in a series, but really it's not our fault.  You should blame the authors for writing so many good series, not us the innocent readers and reviewers).  You see, this series is out of print.  Yikes!  But, you can still check them out at your local library.  Or you can be like a certain Aunt Sissy and hunt down some used copies on Amazon.  Either way, I think your tweenager would like this series.

Based on the hit Discovery Kids channel series, Static #1 (Flight 29 Down) starts off with a bang.  Flight 29 crash landed and it's seven survivors, all teenagers and one pilot, bound for their school-sponsored eco-trip, have no idea where they are.  The pilot quickly organizes a search party in order to explore the unfamiliar surroundings. Not knowing when or if they will return, the remaining classmates, Nathan, Daley, Melissa, Taylor, Eric, Lex and Jackson must now work together in order to survive.  Their resources are scarce and besides the wreckage of their airplane, shelter is almost nil.  Ranging in age from 10 to 16, the survivors navigate their personalities, hunger, and fear to try and make it through each day. Unlikely friendships are formed and some pretty impressive feats are accomplished.  If it sounds like the TV show Lost, it is... almost.   It's more like Lost and Saved by the Bell had a love child.  How's that for a mental picture?

My daughter gobbled this entire series up as fast as she could get her hands on them.  Are they winning any Pulitzer Prizes?  No.  But they are highlighting common issues (peer pressure, stereotypes, boy/girl relationships) in a nice little paperback package.  Add to that the element of suspense and the underlying theme of adventure and teamwork and they make for fun reads.  Since this is the first in a series you can safely assume the survivors are not rescued by the end of the book. What fun would that be?  There are six more books in the series.  And yes, we have all of them.  Now, if we only had our luggage...

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