After a virus destroys most of the world's adult population, a group of children are delighted to discover a colony of adult survivors in a Florida shopping mall but soon find that they are not as friendly as they appear.
As one of the "lucky" ones who survived a nuclear bomb, Brad believes that someday all will be well again until he meets Angel who shows him the bitter reality of being a survivor of the last war.
Four quimbles, each no bigger than a little finger, fall out of a car in a forest where they must learn to fend for themselves quickly since winter is not far off.
After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian spends fifty-four days in the Canadian wilderness, learning to survive initially with only the aid of a hatchet given him by his mother, and learning also to survive his parents' divorce.