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Only the elders of the Valley remember life the way it used to be…when people traveled in automobiles and bought food others had grown. When the male-to-female ratio was nearly the same. Before the bombs fell, and a deadly virus claimed the world’s men.
Now civilization’s few surviving males are guarded by women warriors like Dian. When an unexpected convoy of strangers rides into her village, it is Dian who meets them, ready to do battle.
To her surprise, the visitors come in peace and bear a priceless gift, whose arrival is greeted with as much suspicion as delight. It is up to Dian to discover their motive, in a journey that will cost her far more than she ever imagined, a journey from which she may never return.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Awards
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Release date
August 3, 2004 -
Formats
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780553900378
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780553900378
- File size: 1002 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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August 1, 2004
In the not-so-distant future Richards envisions, women warriors guard their peaceful, self-sustaining California enclave, hunting, planting, harvesting, and keeping watch over the men and boys essential to survival after most males perished along with electric power and fossil-fuel-driven engines. When Dian and her pregnant sister, Judith, discover two strange wagons headed their way, they are suspicious and, when they recall a single, armed wagon's devastation on a settlement called the Smithy village only a year ago, frightened. With men, children, and elders safely hidden in a cave, however, the visitors are carefully welcomed in a well-guarded, open area. They hail from southern Oregon, 300 miles away, and bring valuable gifts: Isaac, a grown man, and his small son. They wish to join forces with the Californians to escape the waterborne, irradiated contaminants let loose by an aggressive group led by one Queen Bess. This sets in motion an engaging adventure in which Dian must make a hazardous journey to investigate the northern dangers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)
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