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librarylandlisa's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a neat look into consumerism and what it could be like in the future if everyone maintains a way of thinking that allows corporations to decide what is best for us and what we need. If our society continues to view resources as throw away and not important or renewable.
For the bad of this book is that it was written some time ago and Anderson's perception of this future world and future trends and slang were a bit grating at times. I think that it makes the readability suffer when all of these whacky slang terms and nick names interfere with the absorption of the novel... then again, maybe some people enjoy that.
This book was read for coursework for my RA for YA class and it is featured for the scifi week. I am a scifi fan and I do not feel like this is a book I would select to showcase this genre. The book was published in 2002 and it feels like it is getting dated, despite being about the future. Similar to the way that the movie Back to the Future's ideal for the future seem dated now.
For the bad of this book is that it was written some time ago and Anderson's perception of this future world and future trends and slang were a bit grating at times. I think that it makes the readability suffer when all of these whacky slang terms and nick names interfere with the absorption of the novel... then again, maybe some people enjoy that.
This book was read for coursework for my RA for YA class and it is featured for the scifi week. I am a scifi fan and I do not feel like this is a book I would select to showcase this genre. The book was published in 2002 and it feels like it is getting dated, despite being about the future. Similar to the way that the movie Back to the Future's ideal for the future seem dated now.
algorithminflux's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. Definitely worth reading for the author's note at the end.
deepzeediving's review against another edition
1.0
I tried to finish it, I really did. I got about 35 pages in before I realized that the satisfaction of finishing a book would probably be diminished by my hating every moment that I spent reading it. So it is will a not-at-all-heavy heart that I'm tossing this book in a corner of my room, never to be touched again.
marzipan951's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
avalete's review against another edition
3.0
The teenage slang in this one made me feel old. As with most good “what if?” stories though, the satirization of technology shines through. Especially with the protagonist being a teen, there’s a constant stress of wanting to fit in and “be normal” while also being aware of how powerless the individual is in the face of a wholly consumerist state. Overall this was a good book, the prose made it difficult at times but that added to its charm.
ckeithjohnson's review against another edition
4.0
This was good in the way dystopia is supposed to be good. The writing is atrocious, on purpose. The world is exceptionally similar to ours. I will not be able to go into tomorrow looking at Facebook and Instagram in the same way. That's good. Was it an easy read? No it was slow and the dialogue was difficult to get through (it was repetitious and said a whole lot of nothing most of the time) but the point was clear and crisp and challenging.
kate4ez's review against another edition
4.0
This book feels scarily accurate and horribly prescient about the end of America for a book from 2002. This is a story where the president alienates the rest of the world; the natural world is destroyed for profit; people die because they lack money to pay for treatment. Whole towns die, skin and hair fall out, natural reproduction is impossible, and these events barely register in the constant barrage of advertisements and entertainment. Everything in this story feels very plausible.
I listened to this book on Audio, and one part hit me so hard I stopped the playback:
“It’s the end. It’s the end of the civilization. We’re going down.
I just hope my kids don’t live to see the last days. The things burning and people living in cellars.
The only thing worse than the thought it may all come tumbling down is the thought that we may go on like this forever.”
I have had similar thoughts about my own kids.
I listened to this book on Audio, and one part hit me so hard I stopped the playback:
“It’s the end. It’s the end of the civilization. We’re going down.
I just hope my kids don’t live to see the last days. The things burning and people living in cellars.
The only thing worse than the thought it may all come tumbling down is the thought that we may go on like this forever.”
I have had similar thoughts about my own kids.
mar1amreads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
roschelle's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book made me reflect on our society, so I think it is worth reading. It got difficult to read at times because of the way Titus narrates. His speaking/narration style added to the story but also made me feel like I was losing brain cells, which is definitely the intention. It got kinda tough in some parts though.
I struggled getting through all the lesion talk 🤢
I struggled getting through all the lesion talk 🤢