Hacked by Tracy Alexander

Book of the Week: 10 April 2016

Dan’s grandmother always says that he is ‘too bright for his own good’. When his restless mind discovers coding he finds it gives him access to all kinds of benefits, not all of them legal. He starts by getting his little sister free credits for the online hangout ‘Club Penguin’ then moves up to hacking to provide phone credits for friends. From there he drifts on to the dark web where he provides coding for a virtual friend called Angel which triggers all kinds of mayhem in his real life. Does Angel have anything to do with a missing drone and a terrorist threat?

Hacked is not just a suspenseful story, with convincing-sounding details about hacking, but a book about activism and the politics of surveillance. It has more in common with the American book Little Brother by Cory Doctorow than stories about gaming such as Erebos. The serious content is conveyed in an easy, readable style. Dan is likeable, if naive and misguided, and his family and friends are warm and sometimes funny. A small criticism is that Dan is at first described as having ADHD but almost instantly ‘cured’ and the plot is wrapped up a bit too quickly at the end. However, there is a sequel called Alias which I am adding to my wish list.

The Carnegie Medal Shortlist 2016

The Carnegie Medal is awarded by librarians each year for an outstanding book for children and young people.

All eight books are in stock in the Library and anyone is welcome to read along with me or write a review.

So far, I have read The Lie Tree, There Will Be Lies, (‘Lies’ is a popular word for titles this year) The Rest of Us Just Live Here and Five Children on the Western Front (the only one that is aimed at younger children). I am currently reading The Ghosts of Heaven – an intriguing story in quarters that can be read in any order and which should still make sense.

The winning book will be announced on 20 June.