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"That bustling, lively place of the longpaws was wrecked and gone, and they were leaving it forever."
Lucky on leaving his home in The Empty City, page 142
The Empty City
TEC

Series

The Original Series

Book Number

1

Pages

288[1]

Word Count

53,953[2]

Author

Gillian Phillip[3]

Date Released

Hardcover: August 21st, 2012[4][4]
Paperback: May 7th, 2013[1][1]
eBook: August 21st, 2012[5][5]

Identification

Hardcover: ISBN 0062102567[4]
Paperback: ISBN 0062102583[1]
eBook: ASIN B007HC3RFO[5]

Preceded by

Moon's Choice

Succeeded by

A Hidden Enemy

Additional Information

The Empty City

The Empty City is the first book in the Original arc.[4] Lucky is featured on the center of the cover with (left to right) Bruno, Martha, Sunshine, Mickey, and Bella.[6]

Dedication

Special thanks to Gillian Philip
For Lucy Philip

The Blurb

It's time for dogs to rule the wild.

Lucky is a golden-haired mutt with a nose for survival. He has always been a Lone Dog, relying on his instincts to get by. Other dogs have Packs, but Lucky stands alone.
Then the Big Growl strikes. Suddenly, the ground is split wide open. The Trap House is destroyed. And all the long-paws have disappeared.
Now Lucky is trapped in a strange and desolate new world with no food, foul water, and enemies at every turn. He falls in with others left behind, including his littermate Bella, a Leashed Dog. Relying on other dogs-and having them depend on him-brings new dangers that Lucky isn't prepared for, but he may not be able to survive on his own. Can Lucky ever be a true Pack Dog?

The Praise

"Hunter expertly explores the tensions between responsibility and freedom; risk and safety; and loyalty and acceptance. Viewing the unfolding adventure through Lucky’s eyes makes even the most mundane or familiar seem alive with magic. Wild and wonderful adventure for middle-graders."[7]
—Kirkus Reviews
"Young readers will find plenty to like here, from the fast-moving plot, to the characterizations of individual dogs. A promising start for the many fans of the Warriors and Seekers adventure series."[8]
—Booklist

Detailed Plot Summary

The story begins with several pups gathered around their Mother-Dog awaiting a story. The protagonist, named Yap, is one of the pups. Their mother decides to tell them about the Storm of Dogs, a fierce battle, and warns them about another Storm of Dogs. Yap is scared, but he knows his Mother will protect him. Yap feels comfortable and safe until a storm breaks out. The lightning scares the pups to bed, knowing they have a destiny ahead of them.
In the present, Yap, now known as Lucky, wakes up in the Trap House to the start of an earthquake. The earthquake kills all dogs in sight, except for him and his new friend, Sweet. The two survivors escape the Trap House and find a place to sleep. After surveying the city the next morning, they decide to find food. Sweet suddenly remembers her Pack left behind in the Trap House and tries to go back, but Lucky convinces her not to since he believes they are dead. After finding little food, Lucky and Sweet go in search of more food and encounter a group of raccoons fighting over a carcass. Lucky finds a Food House and enters the building with Sweet, only to find a dying longpaw inside. The longpaw dies and Sweet decides to leave the city and Lucky behind to find a new Pack. They don't know what lies ahead of them- but they can tell danger is.
Lucky wanders around the city, encountering dangers at every turn, until he comes to a mall and meets up with Old Hunter, a friend. Suddenly, Lucky realizes that Old Hunter is in danger from an electrical cord and saves him. Old Hunter is grateful that Lucky saved his life and gives him some meat to take with him. Lucky takes the meat and encounters four foxes who are after his food. After Lucky is cornered, a Pack of dogs appear and drive off the foxes. Lucky recognizes his littersister, now named Bella. After a happy reunion, Bella introduces him to Bruno, a German Shepherd, Mickey, a Border Collie, Sunshine, a Maltese, Daisy, a Westie/Jack Russell mix, and Martha, a Newfoundland. Lucky suddenly realizes they are wearing collars and is shocked to learn they are Leashed Dogs. Lucky tries to leave them, but a storm starts outside and he is convinced by Bella to stay for a while. They have a friendly chat. Lucky is convinced to join the Leashed Dogs. He joins.
The next morning, the Leashed Dogs get excited about returning to their longpaw homes and Lucky decides to go with them. The dogs reach their destination and separate to sleep in their own homes, with Lucky joining Bella. After a while, the siblings sense another Big Growl coming and run out of the house. The other dogs join them and watch as one of the houses collapses, but another Leashed Dog, Alfie, is trapped in the same house. Lucky and Bruno go to rescue him. After the rescue, Daisy falls unconscious from a gas leak, when she tries to go back for something in her house. Lucky uses this to show that the Pack cannot hold onto the hope of their long-paws. He lets them take one item each that will remind them of their owners in the wilderness. He is sad for them as he knew what it felt like to be ignored.
Lucky and the Leashed Dogs head from the city and find a small river. Alfie runs toward the water, however Lucky stops him and takes him back toward the others, as he could sense something was wrong with the river. The dogs investigate the river, which was possibly formed by the Big Growl. Suddenly, the dogs stumble upon long-paws wearing hazard suits. Daisy darts toward the long-paws, with the other dogs after her. Daisy reaches one of the long-paws, but she is kicked away from them. The dogs turn the opposite way to reach the wilderness.
After the dogs truly leave the city behind, the dogs encounter a fresh river and run toward it. After drinking and playing in the water, dogs come back up. Lucky is about to teach the dogs how to hunt, when he notices that Bruno is missing. They hear a big splash and see Bruno trapped in a current. Before Lucky goes after Bruno, Martha intervenes and saves him. After the rescue, Lucky notices that Martha has webbed feet and feels confident that, one day, the Leashed Pack will survive without him. The next morning, after having a nightmare, he takes the Leashed Dogs hunting. After the success of catching a rabbit, Lucky believes that the dog-spirits are waking up in the Leashed Dogs.
The dogs make their camp by the river and divide their duties for collecting bedding, hunting, and guarding. Several days pass and the Pack is well-settled into their new home. During hunting, Mickey gets trapped in a bush which Lucky and Bella get him out from, by removing his collar. However, Bella and Bruno try to put it back on and Lucky is shocked by this. He attacks Bruno and takes hold of his collar to show them what they can do to dogs. Bruno is released, but the Leashed Pack protests against taking off their collars. Lucky walks away and suddenly hears Alfie searching for the Pack. He has news that there are other dogs and food farther away. Bella suggests taking Lucky, Alfie, and Daisy to inspect the place, although Lucky doubts it is a safe place for the Leashed Dogs. After they reach the fenced-in area, he is instantly suspicious and he and Bella fight over whether is is safe or not. Lucky backs off and lets the three dogs enter the hole under the fence. After having doubts about the danger, Lucky follows them.
As he approaches the Leashed Dogs, a pack of Fierce Dogs show up from behind a building. They encircle the Leashed Dogs, while Lucky watches from his hiding place. Their Alpha, Blade, decides to take them prisoner and interrogate them. Lucky secretly follows them to the same house and eavesdrops; to his horror, he learns that the Fierce Dogs are aware of his presence. Lucky then decides to rescue his friends, and distracts the Fierce Dogs. He uses quick maneuvers and trickery as the Fierce Dogs chase him in the Dog-Garden, but suddenly meets a dead end. Before the Fierce Dogs could tear him up, the sight of a crow re-energizes him again and he lunges at Blade, dashing back to the hole in the fence. He escapes, meets his friends in the forest, and heads back to camp.
Back at camp, the other dogs are warned of the danger, and must get away from the Fierce Dogs as far as possible. On their journey, the dogs encounter a long-paw carrying a dead deer. Bruno, Sunshine, Mickey, and Alfie go after it and it is up to the other dogs to stop them. Bella scolds them for their behavior. Traveling again, the dogs reach a hill, where Bella tells the Leashed Dogs they must give up their long-paws' items or they won't survive. Refusing to do so at first, the dogs sadly bury their items. However, Mickey refuses to give up the baseball glove that his Long-paw Pup had in the hopes they will come again. The Leashed Pack howls a final goodbye to their past.
Resuming their journey, the dogs find a wide valley with a sparkling river as their home. Lucky decides that it is time to depart, and tells the Pack. They plead for him to stay, but they understand why he has to go. The dogs hunt for him and they share the food between themselves, with Lucky getting first bite. On his last night with them, he has a horrible nightmare about The Storm of Dogs. Spending one more time together with the Pack, Lucky heads off for the life as a Lone Dog. Lucky is glad to be in the forest, all by himself, ready to live a free life. Suddenly, in the distant, he hears a dog fight between an unknown Pack and the Leashed Pack. Lucky races back to the valley to help his friends.

Trivia

  • Survivors is not written by the original Erin Hunters, but two other authors have joined the team under the same pen-name.[9]
  • Clear-stones are mistakenly called windows.[10]
  • In this book, Bella's long-paw memento is referred to as a stuffed bear toy.[11] This contradicts Darkness Falls, as in it, bears are referred to as giantfurs.[12]
  • The Empty City has 4 1/2 stars out of 5 on Amazon.[13]

Publication History

  • The Empty City (EN), HarperCollins (Hardcover), 21 August 2012[4]
  • The Empty City (EN), HarperCollins (e-Book), 21 August 2012[5]
  • The Empty City (EN), HarperCollins (paperback), 7 May 2013[1]
  • Mrtvé město (CZ), Albatros (paperback), 24 February 2014[14]
  • Die verlassene Stadt (DE), Beltz (hardcover), 10 March 2014[15]
  • Autio kaupunki (FI), Jalava (hardcover), 7 March 2014[16]
  • 绝境重生 (CN), 中国少年儿童出版社 (paperback), 1 August 2014[17]
  • Lucky le solitaire (FR), Pocket Jeunesse (paperback), 2 January 2015[18]
  • 孤独の犬 (JP), KomineShoten, 24 September 2014[19]
  • Пустой город (RU), OLMA Media Group, 2014[20]

 


References and Citations

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Revealed on HarperCollins Catalogs
  2. Revealed on www.arbookfind.com
  3. Revealed in The Empty City Dedication
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Revealed on HarperCollins Catalog
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Revealed on HarperCollins Catalog
  6. Revealed on Survivors website
  7. Revealed on Kirkus Reviews
  8. Revealed on Booklistonline.com
  9. Citation Needed
  10. Revealed in The Empty City, page 109
  11. Revealed in The Empty City, page 142
  12. Revealed in Darkness Falls, pages 230-231
  13. Revealed on Amazon.com
  14. Revealed on knihy.abz.cz
  15. Information from Amazon.de
  16. Information from Risingshadow.fi
  17. Information from amazon.cn
  18. Information from amazon.fr
  19. Revealed on KomineShoten website
  20. Revealed on OLMA Media Group website


The Empty City Chapters
PrologueChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3Chapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6Chapter 7Chapter 8Chapter 9Chapter 10Chapter 11Chapter 12Chapter 13Chapter 14Chapter 15Chapter 16Chapter 17Chapter 18Chapter 19Chapter 20Chapter 21Chapter 22
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