Slide or Die (DriftX Series #1)

Publishers Weekly

This first installment in a planned trilogy about cars, girls and race by veteran author Strasser (Give a Boy a Gun) introduces 16-year old Kennin Burnett. He has moved to Las Vegas from California with his older sister to be near their surviving parent-a dirtbag father, who's imprisoned in a Club Fed-type facility for Internet fraud. Kennin makes a friend, Tito, at the casino garage where they work washing the high-rollers' Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Bentleys. Though Kennin is deliberately vague, somewhere in his mysterious California past, he picked up a passion for "drifting," a form of racing which involves skidding around turns while going downhill. Though neither Tito nor Kennin is old enough to drive, Tito's sister, Angelita is. And in her, Kennin finds a mature soulmate, and a girl who knows her way around an RB25DET engine. She also owns a vehicle-a Nissan 240 SX. This becomes important when Kennin is recruited to compete against a racist classmate in a "tsuiso," the Japanese term for a two-car race to the bottom of the hill. The book ends, abruptly, without the race taking place, but the hip subject matter, manga-style illustrations, short chapters and quick pace are sure to attract an audience who will demand the next installment, Battle Drift, due in April. Ages 14-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Children's Literature

This first book of the "DriftX" series does little more than create the slow exposition for later novels to come. Kennin, a newcomer to Sin City, is obviously hiding a mysterious past that threatens to be made known, as he finds himself speeding from the police at a reckless pace down a mountain with his two friends in tow. This stint ultimately leads to intrigue, popularity, and interest on the part of other Las Vegas natives, who seem controlled by the fast tricked-out cars and little else. Kennin seems to want nothing to do with the drift races that stimulate his classmates into a frenzy every weekend, yet he still agrees to a race that never quite takes place in this first book. The novel leads up to the long discussed tsuiso battle, but you have to read the next book to find out what happens. Reluctant readers will find this to be a quick read, complete with pictures, but not much plot to speak of. 2006, Simon Pulse, Ages 13 up.
—Jeanna Sciarrotta

Ruth Prescott

Seventeen-year-old Kennin is new to Las Vegas; a friend he had made at work invited him to go for a ride in a hot GTO. As they drove out of the city toward the mountains, Kennin discovered that the driver with a bottle of tequila was an ex-con who had stolen the GTO. Kennin's group meets up with a group of drivers who compete at a very high rate of speed, sliding the back wheels around turns. The stolen GTO has a tracking device, so the police can locate the car. When the police arrive, Kennin is forced to take the GTO down the mountain road against a very experienced driver. The manga-style drawings will attract reluctant readers and students interested in cars. Slide or Die is appropriate for middle schoolers, although the target audience is probably high school.

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up-This first book in a new series features drifting, a form of racing where the drivers glide cars sideways around curves while going downhill. After their mother died, half Japanese/half American 17-year-old Kennin and his older sister moved to a Las Vegas trailer park to be closer to their father, who is in a nearby prison serving time for Internet fraud. Kennin becomes friends with Tito and his sister Angelita, an expert at customizing cars. One night, Tito's cousin, recently released from jail, shows up in a stolen car and takes the three teens to a drifting event. When police suddenly arrive, he panics, afraid that he will be caught and re-incarcerated. Kennin takes over the wheel and uses his extraordinary driving skills to escape. Word about his feat soon gets around school and Kennin, taunted with racial epithets by his adversaries, is challenged to a race. Tempted by the money, and to prove his worth, he agrees but the story ends before the race takes place, indicating a sequel. Teens will be drawn to the colorful, comiclike cover, black-and-white sketches, car-racing action, and the growing attraction between Kennin and Angelita. A good choice for reluctant older readers.-Michele Capozzella, Chappaqua Public Library, NY Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.