Steampunk + Girl Power + Genetic Engineering + WWI = Leviathan

Just finished the book Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, illustrated by Keith Thompson. It's a young adult novel that I really want to see as a movie. The illustrations really bring the steampunk alive.

It makes me think of the Golden Compass, which I didn't realize until now was steampunk. I'm tempted to borrow the movie again.

So in the world of Leviathan is set at the beginning of WWI, a period of time I'm not too familiar with. Germany and its allies are Clankers, building machines that have multiple legs instead of treads like tanks. Lots of spider imagery and I love the scouts that look like big dogs that seat one person. The main boy character is the heir to the Austrian empire and a Clanker.

The main girl character is British and the UK and its allies are Darwinists, that is they use genetic engineering to develop new animals, including an airship that's based on a whale but really is an ecosystem of many different animals. Pretty cool.

I devoured the book in one day and really want to see this as a movie. And can't wait for the sequel, to be set in the Ottoman Empire.