Rotters - An Odyssey Award Winner

Rotters                          
     by Daniel Kraus

Are you wondering how a book about grave diggers ended up winning the 2012 Odyssey Award?  The Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production is given to the producer of the best audio book produced for children and/or young adults.  The author, Daniel Kraus, has managed to successfully endear us to Joey, an high school outcast who's only triumph in life is the achievement of straight "A"s and a talent with the trumpet.  At sixteen, when his mother tragically dies and he is sent to live with the father he has never met.  Unwelcome, ignored and neglected by his father, Joey Crouch is even more bullied at his new high school.  When he is forced to steal money for lunch, he is caught and labeled as "bad" and taunted by teachers and students alike.  At home, he sleeps on the floor in front of the kitchen sink and is disgusted at the filth and smell that trails his father when he is in the house.  As Joey maintains his "A" average, a fervent wish of his mother, he watches his father and notices a strange intellect and purpose that surrounds his actions.  

A bit reminiscent of A Tale of Two Cities, (those of you who remember the man whose wife cleaned his boots every evening only to find them full of mud the next morning) Joey's father has a similar secret.   As a member of a morbid by proud society of grave diggers, assigned to a specific territory by an old pact, Harnett peruses stacks of newspapers daily to decide who has died and where the best wealth may be buried.

My obvious inclination, were I in Joey's shoes, would be to bolt and find a new place to live.  He, however, realizes that the apple falls not far from the tree and opts to join his father's pursuits and passions.  The story is quite intriguing as he is constantly challenged to be the best "Digger" he can be (all the while trying to maintain his grades).   As he is indoctrinated into this society, he meets the Diggers from around the country and find that they are, in fact, a dying breed...no pun intended.  Lionel, his father's mentor, had actually trained another Digger along with his father and the plot becomes intense when we realize they were both in love with the same woman, Joey's mother. 

Rotters is quite a long journey for a YA novel.  It is divided into two parts, the first telling of his learning/training days, and the second depicting his fall from normal society and journey into the "dark side" of the rotter world.  Baby, his father's counterpart, has a vendetta for Joey and his father and becomes a constant nemesis.  As the Digger culture falls apart, Baby creates "The Rotter Book", a photo-journal of all the graves he has dug and plundered.  This sets a macabre spin to the plot and Joey is very much in danger of being destroyed. 

I enjoyed this story immensely, but be forewarned, it is not a quick read.  I feel it is an amazing story of challenge, choice and chilling scenarios.  This is a story of strength, determination, dedication and devotion is a completely unexpected venue.  It would be a terrific summer vacation or cruise ship read.

For more information about the author, Daniel Kraus: his bio, book trailer, and his other works go to http://danielkraus.com/.

To get know more about The Odyssey Awards, go to http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/news/ala/listening-library-wins-2012-odyssey-award-rotters.