Front Lines

Grant, Michael. Front Lines, Katherine Tegan Books, 2016.

The world is on the brink of a second world war, but something has changed from the history we know: the United States has extended the draft to include both male and female people over 18. This book follows three different girls who all enlist for various reasons and end up running into each other during the course of the war.

Told in alternating chapters among the three characters, this is a fairly standard war story with a small twist. It's still about training and fighting and killing people and questioning your motives, etc. etc. But the difference is that the three characters we follow are female, so in addition to typical soldier issues, they are also dealing with quite a bit of sexism (and racism, and classism, etc.). The three girls are from three very different parts of the country and each have their reasons for enlisting. This story is action-packed, fast-paced, and an easy book to recommend to teens.

Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: sexist, racist, homophobic slurs - all fitting with the time period depicted; violence
Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

Read-Alikes: All Quiet on the Western Front, Wolf by Wolf,Rose Under Fire