The Bunker Diary

By Kevin Brooks

I can't believe I fell for it.
It was still dark when I woke up this morning.
As soon as my eyes opened I knew where I was.
A low-ceilinged rectangular building made entirely of whitewashed concrete.
There are six little rooms along the main corridor.
There are no windows. No doors. The elevator is the only way in or out.
What's he going to do to me?
What am I going to do?

People are really quite simple, and they have simple needs. Food, water, light, space, privacy. Maybe a small measure of dignity. A bit of freedom. What happens when someone simply takes all that away?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lerner Publishing
• Release date: Mar 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781467776462

Kevin Brooks

Kevin Brooks was born in Exeter and studied in Birmingham and London. He had varied jobs in a crematorium, a zoo, a garage and a post office, before he secured his first book deal for Martyn Pig, a black comedy about a 15-year-old who decides not to tell the authorities when his alcoholic father dies accidentally. Martyn Pig was shortlisted for a 2002 Carnegie Medal, won the 2003 Branford Boase Award, and set the tone for the dark subject matter of Kevin's novels.

Reviews for The Bunker Diary

[plaidapple · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Wow what... do I even say about this book. First of all, I'd hesitate to categorize this as YA as it is extremely dark. I think this book is something that might suit a discussion forum quite well, if your book group is interesting in asking more extrapolated, theoretical questions rather than actually discussing what is in the book. It brings up a lot of interesting points (e.g. how we create meaning, whether seeing logic in a set of actions outside of your control matters, what it means to try and live by your principals when it may hurt you to do so). However, these same ideas could be brought up in a much, much less brutal way. I personally will never reread this book and felt very jarred by it, especially the ending. If you like thrillers, dark psychological torture, etc. you might enjoy it. In some ways, it reminded me of the last 1/3 of Dan Chaon's "Ill Will," which I did like quite a lot, but this didn't have anything experimental or driving about the text. Just bad thing after bad thing.

[sullywriter_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A dark, intense, completely engrossing story.

[raeadav · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have no words. I read this book quickly and I thought it was a great read. But the ending...I just...nope...no words.

o_o

[katherineb729 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very good book. The writing was excellent, the characters were great and I was gripped right from the start. I found that I couldn't stop reading, just so that I could find out what happens... Overall, an amazing book!

[mjspear_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Relentless grim recounting of boy's abduction and holding in an underground bunker. The boy is joined by others -- an assortment of society folks and ages. The boy, Linus, slowly comes to realize that his parents loved him and that he should go back home. Alas, all of the captured people die --one by one-- including him. Don't hand this book to any one feeling a bit down... !

[scatlett-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wonderful book, loved everything about this book except the ending.

[sharonlong_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was... a very good book. Not going to lie: I threw it across the room at a certain point. You may too. It was Dark with a capital D. Abandon all hope ye who enter here. Left me shaken, not sure if there are many teens who would enjoy it.

[ecataldi-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is one of those books that will haunt you and make you ponder how you would have acted in the characters places. It's like "Lord of the Flies" except possibly worse. It's unfathomably dark and will keep teens (and adults on the edge of their seats. Sixteen year old Linus wakes up alone, cold, and hungry in an abandoned bunker. There's an empty kitchen, dining room, bathroom, six bedrooms, and an elevator. How will he survive? Can he escape? Will he go mad? As the days turn into weeks, more people find themselves drugged and awakening in the nightmarish bunker. There's a nine year old girl, a junkie, a young career woman, a business man, and an old gay man. Can they work together or will the bunker slowly drive them all insane? What is the point, why are they there? This is one of those books that I literally yelled out a bunch of expletives when I got to the end. It's maddening. A great read, impossible to put down, that will make readers really think.

[debra_armbruster · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fantastically written, but far too disturbing to write about immediately. Some time to think is needed.

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

teen/adult fiction. I pretty much read this in one sitting.