Dystopian / Post Apocalyptic Novels
Wither
Bibliography: DeStefano, L. (2011). Wither. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Rhine is sixteen and is part of a world that has genetically created the children of this society. It is all good though because most diseases have been erased, the one down fall - women will live until twenty and men will live until twenty-five. There are no exceptions. Rhine's world is brutal, he parents have died and she and her twin brother are trying to survive by being invisible and hiding in their family home so that the outside world will not know they are there. Rhine has to be careful because girls are kidnapped and sold to be brides at a very early age, so that they can bear children before it is time for them to die. Rhine gets picked up and is sold to be one of the wives of Linden Ashby who is wealthy and lives like royalty. There, she and two other girls - the sister wives - have to deal with being sequestered from the world. Rhine wants to, she is ready to escape at the first chance she gets. She begins to bond with her sister wives and gets to know her husband who she feels sorry for, and she has a special connection with Gabriel, a servant. Rhine must decide if she can risk leaving her sister wives, Gabriel and Linden to find her twin brother and be free. I really liked this book because of the strong characters and the vivid writing of the situations. I found myself rooting for Rose, then Jenna, and now Rhine and Gabriel. I would recommend this book.
Divergent
Bibliography: Roth, V. (2011). Divergent. New York: Harper Collins.
Beatrice is sixteen and must select which faction she will join and be a part of for the rest of her life. After testing, Beatrice must choose between staying with her family or joining the group that she belongs with, so she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself. She must now endure a rigorous and competitive initiation and training period that she quickly discovers she must survive, not just get through.Tris, as she is now known, has a secret that she must keep from everyone if she is to keep safe. She has to decide who her friends are and who her enemies are and she has to sleep with one eye open, since some of the initiates are being eliminated. Will she survive training and initiation? Will she be able to stop the impending trouble between all the factions that has been brewing? This book is filled with adventure, relationships, finding out about ones self and trust and I would highly recommend this book.
Unwind
Dystopian books are fictional societies that are incredibly flawed. They can take place in the past, present or future, but in all cases, the society has a major problem. Dystopian books often reflect the fear and anxieties and the reader will find that what they fear will happen often does.
Post Apocolyptic novels are concerned with the end of the world or civilization due to a catastrophic event and then living in that society after surviving the event. The stories often deal with the impact of the losses of the characters, the changes in their day to day world and the world overall. The stories often reveal the characters psychological state after the event and how those that are affected will survive and move forward.
These two types of novels are similar in that they are both regarding a major problem in society that forces change. The characters have to decide how they are going to handle that change and what they need to do to survive in their new environment.
Some of these stories can seem rather depressing in that the story has to do with a catastrophic event or a flawed society. What is positive about these novels is that the characters must decide what is important to them and if they will conform to the new societal changes or if they will venture out and try to make changes on their own or with others who have the same goal.
Wither
Bibliography: DeStefano, L. (2011). Wither. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Rhine is sixteen and is part of a world that has genetically created the children of this society. It is all good though because most diseases have been erased, the one down fall - women will live until twenty and men will live until twenty-five. There are no exceptions. Rhine's world is brutal, he parents have died and she and her twin brother are trying to survive by being invisible and hiding in their family home so that the outside world will not know they are there. Rhine has to be careful because girls are kidnapped and sold to be brides at a very early age, so that they can bear children before it is time for them to die. Rhine gets picked up and is sold to be one of the wives of Linden Ashby who is wealthy and lives like royalty. There, she and two other girls - the sister wives - have to deal with being sequestered from the world. Rhine wants to, she is ready to escape at the first chance she gets. She begins to bond with her sister wives and gets to know her husband who she feels sorry for, and she has a special connection with Gabriel, a servant. Rhine must decide if she can risk leaving her sister wives, Gabriel and Linden to find her twin brother and be free. I really liked this book because of the strong characters and the vivid writing of the situations. I found myself rooting for Rose, then Jenna, and now Rhine and Gabriel. I would recommend this book.
Divergent
Bibliography: Roth, V. (2011). Divergent. New York: Harper Collins.
Beatrice is sixteen and must select which faction she will join and be a part of for the rest of her life. After testing, Beatrice must choose between staying with her family or joining the group that she belongs with, so she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself. She must now endure a rigorous and competitive initiation and training period that she quickly discovers she must survive, not just get through.Tris, as she is now known, has a secret that she must keep from everyone if she is to keep safe. She has to decide who her friends are and who her enemies are and she has to sleep with one eye open, since some of the initiates are being eliminated. Will she survive training and initiation? Will she be able to stop the impending trouble between all the factions that has been brewing? This book is filled with adventure, relationships, finding out about ones self and trust and I would highly recommend this book.
Unwind
Bibliography:
Shusterman, N. (2007). Unwind. New York: Simon and Shuster Books
for Young Readers.
Connor is
sixteen and just found out that his parents signed for him to be unwound. He
leaves home thinking he has a friend to runaway with, but she will not leave
her family. Risa is an orphan who has lived her life in a home for unwanted
kids. Due to budget cuts, she is being sent to be unwound. Lev has known his
whole life, since he has been tithed, that he will be unwound. The three of
them end up together and have to fight to keep themselves from being found.
After ending up in a high school, the kids are sent by Hannah, a teacher,
to see Sonia. She takes them in and hides them in her basement with some other
unwinds and they wait to be smuggled to a safe house. They meet up with
other kids and are transported in crates on an airplane to a site in Arizona that
houses old, retired planes - called the graveyard. There they encounter the
General who is in charge of about 400 kids, all of whom are trying not to be
found. They have created somewhat of a society there and find jobs to keep them
busy. Some trouble begins with a group of the kids trying to rebel and the
general seeks out Connor to help be eyes and ears for him. Trouble begins and
the guy who pilots the helicopter is killed and the General has a heart attack.
While trying to get help for the General, Connor, Risa and Roland get caught by
the Juvey Police and are sent to an unwind facility. There they meet up with
Lev, whom they haven't seen in a while. Roland gets sent to be unwound and
Connor is next. When Lev finds out, he causes a distraction and is able to
rescue Connor from the unwound room. In the rubble, they find Risa who has been
paralyzed from the waist down. Connor wakes up in the hospital with his arm
gone and Roland's arm in its place. He knows, from the shark tattoo on the
forearm. Risa chooses not to have her spine fixed from parts from an
unwound. Lev is arrested for causing the explosion and is being kept at the
police station. His older brother says that he can live with him, since his
parents won't take him back home. Risa and Connor go back to the graveyard to
help keep the kids there safe, while they plan to make a little bit of trouble
here and there.
