If you ever thought a book couldn't wax philosophical with a zombie infestation as background, you are so wrong. 
 The Forest of Hands and Teeth is an absolutely remarkable debut novel by author Carrie Ryan. In it, Mary is a member of a community confined to space within a forest, protected by a wire fence that constantly is bombarded by the Unconsecrated; in modern day terminology, we are talking about zombies. I pictured a much less friendly version of M. Night Shyamalan's The Village as I read. The members of Mary's village occupy three distinct groups: the Sisters, who set up structure of the village, its rules and control day-to-day life of the inhabitants; the Guardians, who protect the village from the Unconsecrated and are under direct control of the Sisters; and everyone else, who all perform various functions within the village. There is no leaving the village, both by direct order of the Sisters and because of fear of the Unconsecrated. Mary seems to be something of a quiet maverick, as is her mother. Both are believers that the world was a far differnt place before the Return of the Unconsecrated, a world where the ocean existed and people were free to make their own choices. Such thinking threatens to undermine the structure and carefully planned way of life which the Sisters have implemented. However, all this starts to crumble when a series of events give Mary the opportunity to seek the answers to the questions she has always held in her heart. 
 At the core of the book is the idea that personal freedom is life, and the loss of free will is death. This idea is constant throughout the novel. The zombies, who are literally the living dead, are mindless shells that have no reason for existing other than to consume human flesh - literally, they constantly seek to destroy life. Mary sees her compliance in living within the confines of the village as death, and seeks a life filled with personal choice. As Mary starts to wonder which side of the fence is better to live on, other ideas come into play: 
 *life without love is not a life worth living 
 *all choices have consequences, both good and bad 
 *ignorance only protects for so long, and ultimately causes death 
 *taking risks over playing it safe 
 *personal freedom vs. the greater good 
 *distrust of authority 
 You will not always like Mary as a character - desperation and desire pull cruelly practical actions from various characters in the book, and she is no exception. I personally felt that Ryan never truly answers whether Mary's actions were the right ones; only that Mary, and everyone living, has the right to personal freedom. However, the right to make personal choices comes at a cost, sometimes to those whom Mary loves. 
 What I primarily like about this book is that it is truly Mary's story. There is forbidden love, unrequited love, sibling issues, and best friend jealousies. Despite this, this novel is about Mary and her decision on whether she lives a life filled with choices she can live with, or whether she takes a risk and lives the life of choices she will not, cannot live without. 
 This is a haunting novel, and if you ever had the question, "Which I is I," you will find it an invigorating read. Ryan is a wonderful writer of vivid imagery, sound dialogue, and she is able to give us intrusive insights into Mary's conscience and soul. I look forward to reading her other works and heartily recommend this book. 
 Overall: A 
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 Favorite Quotes 
 "As a child I dreamed of love and sunlight and a world beyond the Forest. I dreamed of the ocean, of a place untouched by the Return. And suddenly I wonder what right we have to believe our childhood dreams will come true. My body aches with this realization. With this truth. It is as if I have cut something important away from myself. The loss is overwhelming." 
 Pg. 105 
 "Getting lost and tangled together in the late-afternoon sun as if there were nothing else in the world that mattered besides twisting along a path that led to nowhere but the middle of a field. When finding the end of the path was not quite as important as the journey to getting there." 
 Pg. 119 
 "'The Sisterhood had it wrong," he says. "It's not about surviving. It should be about love.... that's what makes this life worth living. When you live with it every day. Wake up with it, hold on to it during the thunder and after a nightmare." 
 Pg. 155 
 ". . . I realize that sometimes death comes before you expect it. That while we are rarely prepared for our friends, family and loved ones to die, we are never prepared for our own deaths. Never prepared to reconcile our own regrets." 
 Pg. 184 
 "Suddenly, the roof of the attic is too close. This house is not enough for me anymore. I know that this solitude will never settle through me bones and I realize that I still long for the ocean and it's not enough to just sit in this life and be safe." 
 Pg. 211