Peeps Reviews

***Selected as a Top Ten Book for the 2006 ALA Best Books YA Awards

***Selected as Top 40 Children’s Books for 2005 by Kirkus Reviews

***Selected as one of the Best Books of the Year in 2005 by School Library Journal

***Awarded a 2005 Blue Ribbon by the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

***Selected for Choices 2006 by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center

***Locus Recommended Reading List for 2005

“Both medical thriller and science fiction, this fast-paced, captivating modern vampire story is enriched with biology and history….Entrancing throughout-but squeamish readers beware.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred)

“In alternating chapters, he gives the reader a crash course in real-life parasitology, much like Melville did with whaling, but a lot more entertainingly.”
—Common Sense Media

“Westerfeld’s cunning take on the vampire legend brilliantly uses epidemiology and parasitology as its central focus, interlacing profiles of genuine real-world parasites with his story to shore up its credibility (and add to the shiver factor, since the parasites are often pretty creepy in their own right); the result is essentially the vampires are actually a variant of the carrier strain, who abilities are necessary to fight a primeval underground menace that periodically threatens humanity. The book balances the scientific thread with some classic horror tension and havoc, then throws in heaping helpings of wit (the peep shrieking in terror at the Garth Brooks T-shirt will elicit some ironic sympathy as well as snickers), and then obligingly arranges things so that Lace, the cute girl Cal meets, is infected with the carrier strain as well (though not by Cal), so that she can end up as his girlfriend. Somewhere in between Anderson’s Thirsty (BCCB 4/97) and the movie Love at First Bite, this will be a book that many audiences-vampire lovers, young scientists, thriller fans-will want to sink their teeth into.”
—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books (starred)

“As with So Yesterday, Westerfeld creates an engaging conspiracy set in New York City, filling his novel with provocative facts, this time about parasites. Readers will enjoy the scientific reasoning behind vampirism, and will likely get sucked into the conspiracy with Cal. The book brims with great details (Cal can make himself fake I.D. cards and, like other government workers, spends a lot of his time filling in forms), and he faces off against other victims and encounters plenty of rats. Alternate chapters about parasites provide compelling (and appropriately disgusting) details about their small but powerful world. This is definitely a story to get the brain working.”
—Publishers Weekly

“This innovative and original vampire story, full of engaging characters and just enough horror without any gore, will appeal to a wide audience.”
—School Library Journal

“Rockets along at an amazing pace, benefiting greatly from Westerfeld’s breezy, wisecracking prose-style (think of Douglas Coupland crossed with a really good science writer like Steven Jay Gould). The action chapters alternate with engaging short chapters on the minutiae (heh) of parasitology, lucid scientific explanations of the role of parasites in the world and our body. Between the science and the mystery, Peeps is practically impossible to put down. Scott’s managed to write a vampire novel without ever once visiting the tired old tropes of horror fiction. Instead, he invents marvelous, scientific explanations for the characteristics of vampirism.This is some seriously inventive science fiction, written in an engaging style that’s bound to spark young readers’ interest in biology and parasitology (there’s a short bibliography on parasites at the end of the novel). For adults, this scientific take on a hoary old subject will inspire admiration in the ability of an original talent to mine fresh ore from even the oldest veins.”
—Cory Doctorow on BoingBoing.net

“Provides a gross-out cool quick course on parasitology, with each chapters headed by a discussion of a new beastie, some nasty, some beneficial, all tied thematically to the story…It’s delightfully macabre SF, full of much-needed black humor and some serious gross-out fun, even a touch of Lovecraftian things below and coming apocalypse.”
—Locus Magazine

“In Westerfeld’s latest smart, urbane fantasy, parasite positives, or “peeps,” are maniacal cannibals that cause illness . . . A great many YAs, particularly those who relished M. T. Anderson’s Thirsty and Annette Curtis Klause’ Blood and Chocolate (both 1997) will marvel at Westerfeld’s plausible integration of science and legend.”
—Booklist

“Even non-vampire fans will like this one. Exceptional.”
—KLIATT

338 thoughts on “Peeps Reviews”

  1. i read the uglies series and i liked it (i hate overusing the word love)

    i cant wait to read peeps

  7. Oh my gosh, Peeps totally deserves every single one of those review ( wait… I didn’t read all of them… they were all good, right? ). I’ve read it 10 million times and it is really is was got me started on this wacky vampire phase.

  8. In my opinion, Peeps would make a better movie then Uglies….there is more action in it……and it is one book that I dont think they would really HAVE to follow exactly to win aproval of fans. If they just took the idea of it and went with it a bit…..it would be a great movie

  10. they need to make a 2ed peeps books not another sequal yes i know i cant spell good buy i liked both books <(8~D)

  13. i know you probably have a ton of reviews to read and mine will just be another. sorry. i just wanted to say i love all of your books! this book was the first of yours to get me involve in reading and i just want to say thank you! this book was one of my favorite books ever! i just loved how amazing it is and it really opened up to me out of the world of twilight series which was just kind of weird for me to read. so thanks again! 🙂

  14. I really want to read the book Peeps, I asked for it for christmas.! haha.
    But I really hope a 5th Uglies book comes out… like maybe one writen from Davids persective.. or like what happen with Tally and David while they were out in the wild , making sure freedom didnt destroy too many things.:P That would be amazing!!

    BTW your books are really amazing, I LOVE them! haha
    My friend and I spent , basically, a whole day talking about what it would be like to live in Tally and Aya’s world. ( We determinded that it would be awesome lol)
    Anyway though, your an amazing writter, and I can really connect to your books!
    So, thank you!

    – Jenn-La

  15. I absolutely loved this book, it was the most intriguing thing I’ve ever read. The story is well written and unique, not a total cliche at all. Plus it’s something new and exciting.

  16. Both Peeps and the Last Days were fawesome! I love how I can finally say fawesome and fexellent and fool without people thinking there might be something wrong with me.
    Scott Westerfield’s books are all really fool, thogh I haven’t read the midnighters…

    The Uglies series was really good, I got all my friends to read them and they think so too. It brought up some problems, though. Like, my friend was sort of on the David team and I was really rooting for Zane. We actually shouted at one other. Then Specials came out and Zane died (why?!?!). My friend laughed (*sniffs*)… so cruel.

    Since a lot of people talked about Twilight I feel entitled to do so too. So… I really like Twilight, I was a really big fan. And I mean BIG.
    And then I read the ending. My god it sucked. People: Don’t read Breaking Dawn. Please. Someone warned me and I didn’t listen. So believe me when I say the ending sucked.
    The ending for the Uglies series was okay, for me. it wasn’t sad, but it wasn’t TOO happy (unlike another book I read and mentioned).
    sorry, but i have to say this: “WHY ZANE!?!? WHYYY!?!?”
    The guy I go for never gets chosen, now tell me how that’s fair.

    Anyway, I went a little off subject.
    So… yes, Peeps was fawesome. The Last Days too, but I liked Peeps, better.
    They were a new way of looking at vampires, one that my aunt might actully not hate (my aunt hates ALL vampires. Whether they’re romantic or scary or just plain random, she hates them all. So saying this really means something).
    The ending for the Last Days, though, was really summarized.

  17. You know what I just realized, going back and reading some of these entries and comments. Even all you people who hate Twilight (I don’t hate it, it’s just that it really gets on my nerves (f*ing ending!)) that if we were in Tally’s and Aya’s world (more like Aya’s) you’re just as well giving Stephnie Meyer the number one place. You know how you rank based on how much people say your name? Yeah, that’s totally number one!
    I’m just bored right now, I really should go to sleep since it’s like eleven in the night when I’m writing this where I am…
    I want to argue with someone about Twilight. I can really argue about it for a LONG time. But the only person who will argue is my mom, ’cause she really likes the books. And who wants to argue with parents?
    I feel like I should add something about scott Westerfield, since this blog IS supposed to be about his books.

    So I’ll go ahead and say what i say to all my favorite authors: Thank you!

  23. i love peeps and the last days, i espically love how at the end of last days that Moz relizes he loves Pearl and not Min, cause honestly Min gives me the creeps. i agree there should be a 5 uglies book. i loved how Zane died, but i cried, i also love how you had her and David get back together, and head to pleasure garden. i would recommend any Scott westerfeld books to anyone who wants a chillin and thrillin story. i a gonna read So yesterday next, but why does everyone website say that it is in the Peeps series, i am so comfused is it? HELP!!!! love the books if you havnt read them then read them!!!!!!!!!! you wont want to stop i am telling you. 🙂

  25. estube viendo este libro y me encantaria leerlo, no se mucho de ingles y me gustaria saber si hay publicaciones de peeps en españa y algunos otros… me gusto muchisimo la saga de traicion… gracias

  27. omg loveeeedddddddd last days and peeps soo much what was the parasites name it started with a d and i wanna know omg im in love with scott westerfield and i can finally say fawesome without people looking at me like an idiot yay me that is so fool

  29. i love your books and stuff even though ive never read them and i have no clue who you are!(: luhhhh you;*

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