Mars Evacuees

Evacuated to Mars to train as soldiers in the ongoing war between Earth and the Morrors, children are in continuous peril -- from the elements, from alien life forms, and from one another. Without adult guidance, some children act brutally, beating and threatening others. Dead bodies are seen, and several characters have lost loved ones in the war.

Brief, circumspect discussion of alien procreation involving five sexes.

Teens and tweens curse in times of stress and aggravation: "hell," "damn," "Christ," and "bastard."

School administrator smokes a cigarette, unsupervised teens drink alcohol, celebrating adults drink champagne, children share rum while coping with shock, one child is teasingly called an "alkie."

Parents need to know that Mars Evacuees by bestselling British author Sophia McDougall is a wartime sci-fi story about tweens and teens conscripted into military service and sent to train on Mars as defense fighters while humans battle a multiyear alien invasion on Earth. The kids are continuously in peril, and many have lost loved ones in the war or have family in danger; dead bodies are shown. The most disturbing violence, however, is the bullying and savagery among children (some beating and threatening others) when the adults are absent. The frequency of cursing (in times of stress and aggravation, teens and tweens use "hell," "damn," "Christ," and "bastard") makes this more appropriate for slightly older kids than the publisher's recommendation for age 8 and older.