In Joe Beernink’s Nowhere Wild, a global pandemic has wiped out all but those who possess natural immunity to the disease. Transportation is cut off, food supplies vanish, and many desperate survivors let their basest natures surface. The narration alternates between two Manitoba teens. Thirteen-year-old Izzy Chamberlain, more suburban girl than naturalist, is surviving with the help of her sister, Angie, and their adult neighbour, Rick. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Jake Clarke, a half-Cree kid and experienced wilderness guide on an annual trip to a bush camp with his family, is unaware of the flu. Things eventually turn deadly for the stranded Clarkes, and lone survivor Jake is determined to make it back to civilization.

As the novel unfolds, conditions become progressively worse for Izzy and Jake. Izzy finds herself holed up in a remote cabin in a terrifying domestic setup with Rick, and bushwhacking Jake is faced with dwindling reserves of food and energy. The teens’ chance meeting makes life simultaneously bearable and more dangerous for both.

Beernink’s impressively researched adventure should strike a chord with a generation of digital natives; Izzy and Jake must rely on skills and tools the average Canadian teen will likely never pick up (why use a map and compass when you have GPS on your phone?).

Nowhere Wild is heavy with difficult scenes, some involving pedophilia, abuse, and suicide. Though Beernink’s portrayal of domestic violence is spot on, it’s unfortunate to see yet another example of rape used as a signifier for evil, and a shortcut to ratcheting up the stakes.