DRONE CHILD

In this novel, a Congolese teen uses his intelligence to survive among a group of vicious kidnappers that strong-arm children into becoming soldiers.

Lemba Adula and his family share a happy life in the modest village of Zange in Congo. The bright 15-year-old’s tinkering with electronics such as TVs and radios earns him the name “The Fix-It Boy.” Sadly, the Purification Army threatens Zange’s peaceful existence. These armed men force children to murder their own parents before involuntarily joining the “Purifiers.” While the villagers hide from the Purifiers during a raid on Zange, they fear the sinister group will return. Lemba and his twin sister, Josiane, feel the only way to keep their parents safe is by leaving home. They find work in Congo’s modernized capital city of Kinshasa—Josiane sings, and Lemba makes money with his computer skills. Unexpectedly, his drone-piloting aptitude catches the eyes of Purifiers, who abduct him. He has no choice but to help the group attack its enemies (often innocents) via drone assaults, especially when it uses his parents as leverage. Lemba’s predicament only turns more dire when he learns that Josiane has vanished. In this gripping story, Rothman delivers an immensely appealing young protagonist whose brisk, first-person narration teems with colorful details. Lemba describes a video game joystick as “a distant cousin of my third-hand rifle” and rubs shoulders with a street hustler that has “a built-in GPS for sleaze.” Though Lemba is unquestionably at the mercy of his captors, his adeptness at nearly everything he does makes his plight somewhat less harrowing; he even masters jujitsu from YouTube videos. Meanwhile, there are mere glimpses of the hardships that others suffer, including Josiane. Readers will nevertheless cheer Lemba as he faces off against muscular, AK-47–loving Purifiers brandishing monikers like “Demon Killer.”

A brainy, irresistible hero braves captivity to protect his family in this riveting tale.