Swan Song - Robert R. McCammon Book Review

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"Swan Song"
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Review Summaries

"After a Russian nuclear attack, America is in ruins. Many of those who have managed to survive are dangerous and insane. Black Frankenstein, a huge black man, acts as the protector of a young girl named Swan. She joins him and a small band of other mysterious people in seeking new life amid the burned, radiated country that had been their home. In their travels, they encounter their nemesis, the mad Colonel Macklin, who has gathered an army that attacks budding camps, killing and stealing food, clothing, and the other necessities of life. Swan has the power to heal the devastated land and to bring new life out of the dead, radiation-poisoned soil. If this futuristic Johnny Appleseed is to succeed in her self-appointed mission of restoring the land's health and fertility, she must first survive Macklin and his army."
Gary L. Pullman, Resident Robert McCammon Scholar

"In post nuclear war Earth- there are two powers that rule: The Good and The Evil. The good are led by a small child with hair the color of clouds and eyes so blue they are like sapphires, with the rest of her face hidden behind hideous growths. The Evil are led by an Army of Excellence and a man with no name, a man no one knows, who may not even be human. Hunting the young girl, the man with no name watches in his dreams as suddenly the girl blossoms into a woman, capable of saving the earth, or completely destroying it."
Meredith Griffin, Resident Robert R. McCammon Scholar

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Overall Review

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book - very upbeat
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - part earth & part fantasy world
Explore/1st contact/ enviro story Yes
Plotlets: - surviving a post environmental/nuclear disaster
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Female
Profession/status: - champion of justice
Age: - a kid - a teen
Has magical/special powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main character: - telekinesis - can read emotions - healing
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How sensitive is this character? - soggy whimpering jelly muffin - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - average physique - physically sick

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male - magical being
Age: - 40's-50's
Profession/status: - infantry soldier
Has magical powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist: - mind reading - super strength - can cast all sorts of spells
Eccentric: Yes - obsessed - mentally ill
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount - a lot
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - bulging muscles - very athletic

Setting
Terrain - Desert - Mountains
Earth setting: - 20th century - distant future
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths - explicit references to deaths
scientific jargon? (SF only) - none/very little science jargon needed - a moderate amount of scientific explanation
How much dialogue? - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog - significantly more descript than dialog

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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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