The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey - What's in my apocalypse backpack? #BePrepared #The5thWave

So The Infinite Sea, the sequel to The 5th Wave is being released in just under a week (16th September 2014) and so it's time to start thinking about what you'd pack in case the apocalypse really does hit! With The 5th Wave, you really don't know what's going to hit you next so preparation will be key to survival. Whether there's a nuclear war, an alien attack, a virus, climate change or even evil robots - you need to be prepared. Rick Yancey himself has said "More aliens! More mistrust! More betrayal! More explosions and mayhem! Twists, reversals, surprises!" so God knows what's coming for Cassie!

Title: The Infinite Sea
Author: Rick Yancey
Publisher: Puffin
Publication Date: 16th September 2014
Goodreads Summary: The riveting follow-up to the New York Times bestselling The 5th Wave, hailed by Justin Cronin as “wildly entertaining.”

How do you rid the Earth of seven billion humans? Rid the humans of their humanity.

Surviving the first four waves was nearly impossible. Now Cassie Sullivan finds herself in a new world, a world in which the fundamental trust that binds us together is gone. As the 5th Wave rolls across the landscape, Cassie, Ben, and Ringer are forced to confront the Others’ ultimate goal: the extermination of the human race.

Cassie and her friends haven’t seen the depths to which the Others will sink, nor have the Others seen the heights to which humanity will rise, in the ultimate battle between life and death, hope and despair, love and hate.


The 5th Wave was one of my favourite reads last year and I'm so excited that the sequel is finally here! I have so many favourite quotes from The 5th Wave, one of them being this:

"I had it all wrong," he says. "Before I found you, I thought the only way to hold on was to find something to live for. It isn't. To hold on, you have to find something you're willing to die for."

I'm really hoping for some romance in The Infinite Sea as well as lots of action, I guess that's the teenage girl in me shining through!

So here are a few essentials I'd pack in my backpack: 

1. The backpack

- Well you're not going to get anywhere without the backpack itself and you've got to think sensibly about what sort of backpack you want.

2. Sleeping Bag 

- We're in it for the long haul and we've got to keep warm at night! The sleeping bag could even be used to carry all the rest of your stuff

in if your backpack fails.

3. Windup torch

- Being alone in the dark is not pleasant. 

4. Knives

- Never worry about running out of bullets. This could be handy for hunting, self defense or even cutting yourself free. 

5. A water bottle + water purifier

- Water is ESSENTIAL. Clean water is often hard to find so some

sort of purifier or a makeshift way of filtering the water will also be important for staying healthy. 

6. Sewing/repair kit

- You're not going to have access to shops or new clothes for a looong time (*cry*), so best to bring some little tools to help you keep your stuff in shape or for making makeshift shelter etc. 

7. A map and compass

- God knows where you might end up.

8. Binoculars 

- Who knows what's out there, it's probably better if you don't get too close.

9. Rope

- Perhaps for tying yourself to a branch as you sleep? I think I've read too many books...

10. Your favourite book!

- Probably the most important thing on this list. You might be alone for a long while in an apocalypse, so a good book will be important for keeping you entertained. (You'll probably want to pick something uplifting). 

NB: Burning the pages to make a fire is not acceptable - even in a apocalypse.

So I may have gotten a little carried away with some of these but having done years and year of Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, I figure that these things will probably be useful as a basic 10 items for my apocalypse backpack! 

What would you pack in your apocalypse backpack? Let me know in the comments below! Or even better, created your own apocalypse backpack post/pinterest board/vlog and use the hashtag #BePrepared and #The5thWave! 

If you haven't read The 5th Wave yet, then you absolutely must! The film rights to this novel were snapped up in a 6-figure deal and the very talented Chloe Grace Moretz is set to star as protagonist Cassie Sullivan.