In Nation by Terry Pratchett, an teenaged islander named Mau is off on his coming-of-age rite when a tsunami destroys everything he knows--his family, his people--leaving him an empty island save one inhabitant. Ermintrude, now calling herself Daphne, is a proper English miss and the sole survivor (or so she thinks) of the shipwreck that leaves her stranded with Mau. She too is one of the last of her line. Unbeknownst to her, back in the story's alternate Britain, the 137 people between her family and throne have died of the plague and her father, now king, is desperate to bring her home. Despite their different cultural backgrounds, the two attempt to construct a new life from the wreckage. Soon enough other survivors wash ashore, looking for a "nation" to call home.
Pratchett laces this survivor's tale with equal doses of humor and philosophy, confronting thorny questions of godhood and empire. Mau and Daphne are thoroughly engaging characters, each on their own journey of discovery--Mau searching for the spirit of his people and Daphne for the coreof strength inside herself. Together they face everything from pirates and cannibals to regurgitating Grandfather birds.
Pratchett is the author of the Discworld series for adults and the Wee Free Men for teens. This book stands alone and is more adventure than fantasy, although it is set in an alternate reality sometime in the 19th century. Readers new to Pratchett will appreciate his absurd sense of humor, which is reminiscent of Monty Python's Flying Circus. Who else would use names like the "Gentlemen of Last Resort"? Fans of the author's collaboration with Neil Gaiman, Good Omens, will feel right at home when he takes a break from the action to allow his characters time to discourse with the island's gods.
For an adventure with humor, heart, and a greater purpose, visit this Nation.
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