Sweet Tooth: Volume 4: Endangered Species

by Jeff Lemire, 167 pages

Gus and company head north to learn the truth of Gus's (and hopefully the plague's) origins.  Along the way, they encounter a strange man holing up within the walls of a dam-turned-fortress-of-self-sufficiency.  He offers them sanctuary and a home, but Jeppard doesn't like it.  Who to believe?  They're all so tired of being afraid and running, but if they stay they may never solve the mystery.

Ooh, I don't trust him, either!  Get out of there, people!

Sweet Tooth: volume 3: Animal Armies

by Jeff Lemire, 143 pages

Dr. Singh searches for the truth behind the plague, desperately hopeful that Gus is the key. Meanwhile, Jepperd and the others set out to launch a possibly suicidal rescue mission.

*shudder*

There are some whacked out, unpleasant, and yet momentarily useful (at least until they decide you're not useful) people out there. Everybody's so wounded! Even some of the horrible-seeming characters have sympathetic motives. Some are still just plain bad, though, and you can't help but breathe a sigh of temporary relief when they're out of the picture.

Sweet Tooth: Volume 2: In Captivity

by Jeff Lemire, 140 pages

Gus meets some other kids in the same boat and sees more of the horror the outside world is willing to inflict on its own kind in the name of self-preservation. Meanwhile, we see Jepperd's backstory and learn what was so important about the contents of that duffle bag that he'd sell Gus away for it.

Sympathy, violence, fear, and despising fill these pages. I think I'm going to have to start following each volume of this series with an immediate chaser of sunshine and bunnies.

Sweet Tooth: Volume 1: Out of the Deep Woods

by Jeff Lemire, 124 pages

One of the cover blurbs for this describes it as "Mad Max with antlers." Strangely, that actually fits.

Nine-year-old Gus lives in the woods with his aging, ailing dad, who warns him to never go beyond the perimeter fence and into the dangerous outside world. But he didn't tell Gus what to do if the dangerous outside world comes to the woods. Where can the boy be safe now? And whom can he trust?

Sweet, naive little Gus has that whole "deer in the headlights" look down pretty well. Of course, he comes by it naturally. It's post-apocalyptic chaos out there and no kid with antlers (or bunny ears or a pig snout or whatever) is going to make it very far without a friend...or without a gun. It's not pretty and it's not supposed to be. The reader doesn't know how the world got this way or where it's going (other than nowhere good just yet). But she hopes that Gus and his influence on the big and small will nudge things in a more positive direction soon.

Fight back, kiddos! Come on, Big Man! Hear that little niggling voice in the back of your head? That's your conscience. Listen to it, won't you? *eagerly ILLs Volume 2*