Code Orange

by Caroline B. Cooney

Paperback, 2013

Status

Available

Call number

YA A Coo

Publication

Ember

Pages

200

Description

While conducting research for a school paper on smallpox, Mitty finds an envelope containing 100-year-old smallpox scabs and fears that he has infected himself and all of New York City.

Description

Walking around New York City was what Mitty Blake did best. He loved the city, and even after 9/11, he always felt safe. Mitty was a carefree guy–he didn’t worry about terrorists or blackouts or grades or anything, which is why he was late getting started on his Advanced Bio report.
Mitty does feel a little pressure to hand something in–if he doesn’t, he’ll be switched out of Advanced Bio, which would be unfortunate since Olivia’s in Advanced Bio. So he considers it good luck when he finds some old medical books in his family’s weekend house that focus on something he could write about. But when he discovers an old envelope with two scabs in one of the books, the report is no longer about the grade–it’s about life and death. His own.
This edge-of-your-seat thriller will leave you breathless.

Collection

Young Adult

Barcode

3450

Language

English

Original language

English

Original publication date

2005

Physical description

200 p.; 8.25 inches

ISBN

9780307976147

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Lexile

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User reviews

LibraryThing member NevilShute

Drags in a few places, but fascinating information. It must have bogged down, because I skipped to the end and then came back to fill in the blanks.

16 more

LibraryThing member sara_k

I like the emotions and personalities of her characters but the situations are often unbelievable. I could believe that a student found old small pox scabs in a research book and I can believe that the student would worry about being infected. I can even believe the general email questioning about

the infectiousness of small pox but the kidnapping and Govt. involvement was not something I could believe.

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LibraryThing member parkridgeya

While conducting research for a high school biology report on smallpox, a teenaged boy finds an envelope containing 100-year-old smallpox scabs and fears that he has infected himself and all of New York City.

LibraryThing member mayaspector

This is our 7th grade middle school book discussion book for 2008.

LibraryThing member JRlibrary

Mitty Blake is a junior at St. Raphael’s, a Manhattan prep school for the very smart or the very rich, in New York City. Mitty doesn't really care
about doing his schoolwork. He would rather listen to his iPod and roam the streets. But he must do a paper on small pox for biology class or he'll be

kicked out of AP Biology, which means he won't get to see Olivia. While staying the weekend at his parent’s country home in Connecticut, Mitty discovers some very old medical texts and decides to use these for his research. While thumbing through the old text, he comes across an envelope containing scabs from the 1902 smallpox epidemic in Boston. After handling the scabs, it occurs to him that he could get smallpox from handling them, so he sends anonymous emails to various agencies to try to get some answers. The recipients get suspicious and forward the emails to the FBI. Before the FBI can find Mitty, a terrorist group that plans to use him as a biological weapon kidnaps him. Mitty is trapped and nobody knows where he is. Left alone, with nobody to rely on but himself, Mitty transforms from a laid-back slacker to an ingenious man of action. Some of the scenes are a bit difficult to believe, but the plot is faced paced, and it would be great for a reluctant reader.

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LibraryThing member DF6B_HannahK

Mitty attends private high school in New York City and he is a serious procrastinator. His science teacher, Mr. Lynch, assigns the class a report regarding an infectious disease. Mitty waits the week before the paper is due, and then he finally begins his research on Variola Major a week before the

paper is due. He breathes in smallpox scab dust after opening an envelope in an old medical textbook dated back to the early 1900s. He walks around New York City, and he does not know whether or not he has smallpox and whether or not he could infect the entire city with the deadly disease. I enjoyed the book because it captured my attention through Mitty's constant internal struggle about whether or not he actually has smallpox or not. One has to read it until the end, in order to find out the truth about whether or not he has smallpox.

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LibraryThing member DF1A_ChristieR

feel a little pressure to hand something in–if he doesn’t, he’ll be switched out of Advanced Bio, which would be unfortunate since Olivia’s in Advanced Bio. So he considers it good luck when he finds some old medical books in his family’s weekend house that focus on something he could write about. But when he discovers an old envelope with two scabs in one of the books, the report is no longer about the grade–it’s about life and death. His own.
It was a surprising book. I liked the ending.

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LibraryThing member 59Square

This book was recommended by Julia, and it is definitely creepy. Mitty Blake finds an envelope full of smallpox scabs and unwittingly exposes himself to smallpox. Then it is a race against time to find out as much as he can about smallpox to learn whether or not he has the disease, and whether he

is exposing the whole world to an epidemic. Even though he is only a high school student, his girlfriend Olivia is smart and a good researcher, so they research this thoroughly - on the grounds of writing a paper. I thought the creepiness came from the possibilities that this could happen, and the bioterrorism aspects of what happens to Mitty. Definitely suspenseful and it made my skin crawl.

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LibraryThing member csoki637

The sort of book you have to keep reading, if only because you want to know if a smallpox pandemic will hit the world. The plot is engaging, even if it's not great writing, but the clichés of the evil Arab terrorists and good, brave American lad are rather cringe-worthy. The neo-conservative,

xenophobic message is clear. The quickly moving plot, the only redeeming feature of the novel, starts to fall apart at the end; I wasn't quite sure what happened, when Cooney tried to tie it up all nicely without answering any of the obvious questions. Not a book I would read again.

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LibraryThing member ewyatt

Mitty is a bit of a slacker. He is not really interested in school, but he is oddly transformed at times by his fascination with his infectious disease project and even his exploration on Beowulf - once he finally gets around to reading it. He finds an envelope marked 1902 and in it some small pox

scabs. As he dives more deeply into his research, he wonders if he has gotten infected by breathing in the scabs. He doesn't tell anyone for a long time. After posting a message on the Internet, suddenly everyone is looking for Mitty - the FBI, CDC, and even some terrorist seeming types.
I found this novel to be a bit pedantic. It hits you over the head with its American patriotism and admiration for American heroes. Although it definitely kept me turning the pages, I thought the novel tried to do too much, and I don't know if I believed the ability of Mitty to get out of the situation he found himself in at the end of the book.

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LibraryThing member loafhunter13

Mitty Blake is a talented but underachieving student in advanced biology at a New York City private high school. He is more interested in his friend Olivia than in completing his infectious-disease report, which could keep him from flunking. When he discovers a smallpox scab in an envelope in an

old medical book, his research takes a somewhat urgent turn as he tries to determine whether he has contracted the disease. Searching for information on the Internet (thankfully, the high-achieving Olivia knows how to use a library), he inadvertently alerts a terrorist group to his situation. They kidnap Mitty with the intention of using him as a human biological weapon against the people of New York. The book does pull a reader into finishing it so there is appeal. It is certainly not the characters which are underdeveloped and unlikeable. It is not patriotism or action as there is not much. Same for the dialogue. The terrorist characters are comical stereotypes and the book feels more like it is written out of vengeful, ignorant exploitation of 9/11 than anything. The end was particularly a letdown. I don’t know what makes one go to the end but that characteristic, however appealing, can’t save this book.

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LibraryThing member hoganedix

I was so taken in with this one. It instantly grabs your attention and teaches you more than you would ever want to know about small pox! Excellent recommendation for 7th grade and up.

LibraryThing member lafon

I read this, didn't I? Gosh, I did. I think. I'm so confused.

LibraryThing member RalphLagana

I like young adult books like this one. We have a well-defined character caught up in a straightforward, linear-progressing, problem. The story moves along well and is the kind that is not easily put down. I don't know that I particularly liked the ending, but there really wasn't any other

direction to go with this one. Good book for teens in need of a summer read!

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LibraryThing member celesteporche

Cool YA fiction about a kid that finds a 100 year old medical envelope with small pox scabs in an old book while doing research- he sneezes...now there is a day by day count down until the incubation period ends and he is at risk for spreading this absolutely disgusting and terrifying disease to

the millions and millions of people packed into every city block of Manhattan. I loved all of the gruesome descriptions of what happens to a person's body, as well as the 90's band references.

Takes place and was written soon after 9/11, so there are some reference there too. if you like any of these things in a book, you might like this one:
-medical history
-suspense
-grossness
-the '90s
-music
-romance stories with a 3rd wheel that is a jerk and hates the friend's -girlfriend.

Note to librarians: Great for any middle grades and lower High School just for fun.

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LibraryThing member Javerea

It dindnt get to me

LibraryThing member beckyhaase

CODE ORANGE by Carolyn B Cooney
Mitty is a typical slacker high schooler with a crush on the school brainiac. Mitty and Olivia need to research a biology paper. Olivia chooses typhoid fever, Mitty chooses smallpox. In his research Mitty happens on old envelope that says it contains smallpox scabs.

Mitty, of course, opens and then smells and crumbles the scabs. Is he infected? Will he infect others? Who else is interested in smallpox, a disease that no longer exists – or does it?
Mitty is well developed as is Olivia. The other characters are less well developed and are incidental to the plot. The plot is intricate and after a slow start is heart poundingly detailed. Good information on smallpox is given and is necessary for plot development. Teens will love this novel by a noted writer of YA books. Adults (and teens) will remember their high school days and identify with either Mitty or Olivia.
5 of 5 stars

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