Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Sacrifice (Higson novel)

The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep‎. There isn't going to be a consensus to remove this content. Whether it should remain on its own or merged is a discussion that can continue editorially. Star Mississippi 02:45, 14 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

The Sacrifice (Higson novel)

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Notability challenged since 2014. Sources are a combination of primary and user-generated. No showing of SIGCOV. Could possibly be merged to Charlie Higson, along w/ the other books in the series, as a possible AtD. Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 16:51, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This discussion has been included in the deletion sorting lists for the following topics: Authors, Fictional elements, and Literature. Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 16:51, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Would a merger to an article on the entire series be appropriate? I agree it's far from great shape now. YA Horror is not my thing, so I'll defer to better topical specialists, but it looks like something could be made of this series. I'll note that this article doesn't even appear to acknowledge that the rest of the series was ever published. Jclemens (talk) 18:12, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
There's no demonstration of notability for the series as a whole either. According to the author's article, there are seven books, five of which have individual articles here on WP. All the articles have issues similar to this one in that they just retell the plot w/ long, crufty character descriptions. For some reason, this was the only book article to get tagged. Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 19:46, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I'm willing to be someone like Cunard could come up with enough reviews for each to pass NBOOK. I'm just not sure that's the best way to present them. Jclemens (talk) 20:28, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
A new article for the series would need to be written from scratch, so if we go that way, where does that leave this AfD? Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 21:40, 6 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Do you even write articles? Of course it would not have to be written from scratch; wherever did you get that idea? Jclemens (talk) 02:34, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Because there isn't an article for the series as a whole. Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 04:34, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I don't understand what "from scratch" means in your usage, then, because when I grab five existing files, redirect them, and use their best contents as the nucleus of a new article, I most definitely am not terming that "from scratch". When I open the editor and start from a blank screen, that is what I mean by "from scratch." Jclemens (talk) 19:31, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I'd call that "from scratch," simply because you're still writing a new article, but let's not argue semantics. Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 05:22, 10 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Give me no more than a couple of days, and I'll see if I can get three reviews via WP:Library to save this article. Wish me luck! --Slgrandson (How's my egg-throwing coleslaw?) 05:12, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
@Slgrandson As discussed upthread, most of the other books in this series have articles w/ similar problems. Perhaps it would be better to start work on a single article for the series as a whole? Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 06:12, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you for the ping, Jclemens (talk · contribs).
Keep per the significant coverage in multiple independent reliable sources. Wikipedia:Notability (books)#Criteria says:
A book is presumed notable if it verifiably meets, through reliable sources, at least one of the following criteria:
1. The book has been the subject of two or more non-trivial published works appearing in sources that are independent of the book itself. This can include published works in all forms, such as newspaper articles, other books, television documentaries, bestseller lists, and reviews. This excludes media re-prints of press releases, flap copy, or other publications where the author, its publisher, agent, or other self-interested parties advertise or speak about the book.
Sources
1. Ehde, Ava (October 2013). "Higson, Charlie. The Sacrifice: An Enemy Novel". Voice of Youth Advocates. Vol. 36, no. 4. pp. 81+. Archived from the original on 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2023-06-07 – via Gale.
  The review notes: "This suspenseful, longed-for, fourth novel of the Enemy series takes the reader into the heart of London where the kids must now venture out to find family or replenish their food and water in order to survive. ... The solid writing is, at times, brilliant, such as the Kid's description of music. The unanswered questions will prime readers for the next in the series. This popular, dark dystopian tale with its combination of adventure, horror and suspense will appeal to many at both public and school libraries."
2. Kraus, Daniel (2013-08-01). "The Sacrifice". Booklist. Vol. 109, no. 22. pp. 90+. Archived from the original on 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2023-06-07 – via Gale.
  The review notes: "But the introduction of an intelligent sicko named Wormwood is a thrilling game-changer, and Higson once again impresses by largely avoiding sentimentality and romance to focus more realistically upon the "pulped, scabby, pus-oozing" threat."
3. Articles about the book and its trailer:
  1. Tregoning, Jenny (2012-10-15). "Horror for kids". Southern Daily Echo. Archived from the original on 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2023-06-07.
    The article notes: "The Sacrifice is the fourth book in Higson’s successful The Enemy series, which follow groups of children as they fight for survival after a disease has turned everyone over the age of 14 into a flesh-eating zombie. Things take an even darker turn in this instalment. Small Sam and his sidekick, The Kid, have left the safety of the Tower Of London and set off on a frantic search for Sam’s sister Ella. Out in the Forbidden Zone they bump into all sorts of horrors and as the children desperately try to understand what is happening, they end up turning on each other in a terrifying Lord Of The Flies-style twist."
  2. Golder, Dave (2012-09-07). "Charlie Higson's The Sacrifice: Zombie Book Trailer". GamesRadar. Archived from the original on 2023-06-07. Retrieved 2023-06-07.
    The article notes: "Welcome to what must be the most epic book trailer ever created. It’s for The Sacrifice , the fourth book in Charlie Higson’s young adult zombie series, The Enemy , and it’s been written and directed by Higson himself. Shot in locations around London, including on the Millennium Bridge, the trailer features young actors from Forest Hill School, South London and a cast of zombie-sickos played by fans who entered a nationwide competition to appear in the short film. They bring to life some of the scenes from the new book and a give a taster of the action to come."
There is sufficient coverage in reliable sources to allow The Sacrifice to pass Wikipedia:Notability#General notability guideline, which requires "significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject".
Cunard (talk) 08:56, 7 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

As promised, @Jclemens: A source about the author--and his series--in case we're launching a new series-overview article. (Reviews for the title covered in this AFD candidate's topic that haven't been brought up here may follow soon.)
- Freeman, Martin (2013-11-02). "Charlie Higson has created a monster. His horror series of books has taken over his life.: Books". Western Daily Press. Bristol. p. 20. Retrieved 2023-06-08 – via ProQuest.
Comment Thanks for everyone's work on this article for identifying sources and also cleaning up the trivial characters lists. I've also expanded the article a bit in light of recent sources, @Jclemens and Just Another Cringy Username: how does the article look now? VickKiang (talk) 06:00, 9 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Well, currently ref 4 looks wrong, but we're certainly getting there... Jclemens (talk) 08:06, 9 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Fixed. VickKiang (talk) 08:58, 9 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Much better. As I mentioned before, the other books in the series have individual articles in similar shape to the "before" state of this one. I do like the idea of creating a single page for the series using what we can salvage from the five existing articles. Maybe I'm getting ahead of things, but could we WP:DRAFTIFY this one and the other four to get things going? Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 18:53, 9 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Keep. The reviews above seem to suffice for NBOOK. --_{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| reply here} 03:32, 10 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
At this point I'm willing to call a snow keep, but as the nominator, I'm not sure I'm allowed to do that.Just Another Cringy Username (talk) 05:20, 10 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Merge to Charlie Higson. I'm going to stop this snowball in its tracks by pointing out that 2 of the 4 presented sources are trivial mentions. With only 2 reviews, its sourcing is extremely weak. An entire-series article would likely be a far more viable option, as that does seem to have notability. ᴢxᴄᴠʙɴᴍ (ᴛ) 10:41, 10 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]
Keep per above. The person who loves reading (talk) 02:13, 11 June 2023 (UTC)[reply]

The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.