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katykelly's review
5.0
'If only' environmental wake-up call/satire that educates while being decidedly entertaining.
The format of this hits home, full of social media posts, blogs, online article headlines, it's a perfect display of how news and culture travel fast around the world, at how communication speeds from person to person, how trends spread, and at how the internet is used.
Greenfingers - the name for the sudden outpouring of plants from the bodies of teenagers around the world. It starts with one, and before long adolescents around the world are finding they have green shoots of all sorts at their disposal. What seems quirky at first is seen by some as potentially malicious, dangerous, though by others it seems a perfect skill to exploit. Some of the teenagers see the potential for this to do the world a lot of good.
A world choking on the heating climate. It's our world, but one where there suddenly seems to be an opportunity, without much effort, to make huge amounts of difference and put things right. But can we?
Fisherman's son and CEO's daughter find themselves in battle as one sees his chance to better not only his family's chances but also the world. His rival sees only what she's been presented with in graphs and carefully curated, memorised speeches. Her oil company hasn't done this to the world... has it?
The obvious clash will start here, as giant oil company Dalex starts to train Greenfingers to help their PR standing and possibly their sales. The group of teens train their powers, and teach the reader a fair amount about climate change at the same time. There's even an Elon Musk-type character and Dalex could be Buy 'N' Large from Wall-E, but more sinister.
Watching the teens flex their stems makes for excellent reading, the idea is intoxicating (in a non-Deadly Nightshade way). The insertion of regular social media updates show the world's insights into the Greenfingers phenomenon and how we all see trends and memes and respond to them. It's really well done.
And on top of that, it's quite an exciting drama, with romance and envinronmental issues mixed in. Gabrielle is a Greta-Jesus combo as progenitor and inspirational head of the Greenfingers movement, Theo is the most likeable of the leads, as the everyboy voice of reason. Hester grew on me, she's rather insufferable to start with, unrealistically so, but I enjoyed her transformation, as well as seeing young people connect with nature and release their powers.
It really was an 'if only' by the end... sigh. Would be lovely if this could get people talking. And thinking.
For ages 12 and above. With thanks to Walker Books for providing a sample reading copy.
The format of this hits home, full of social media posts, blogs, online article headlines, it's a perfect display of how news and culture travel fast around the world, at how communication speeds from person to person, how trends spread, and at how the internet is used.
Greenfingers - the name for the sudden outpouring of plants from the bodies of teenagers around the world. It starts with one, and before long adolescents around the world are finding they have green shoots of all sorts at their disposal. What seems quirky at first is seen by some as potentially malicious, dangerous, though by others it seems a perfect skill to exploit. Some of the teenagers see the potential for this to do the world a lot of good.
A world choking on the heating climate. It's our world, but one where there suddenly seems to be an opportunity, without much effort, to make huge amounts of difference and put things right. But can we?
Fisherman's son and CEO's daughter find themselves in battle as one sees his chance to better not only his family's chances but also the world. His rival sees only what she's been presented with in graphs and carefully curated, memorised speeches. Her oil company hasn't done this to the world... has it?
The obvious clash will start here, as giant oil company Dalex starts to train Greenfingers to help their PR standing and possibly their sales. The group of teens train their powers, and teach the reader a fair amount about climate change at the same time. There's even an Elon Musk-type character and Dalex could be Buy 'N' Large from Wall-E, but more sinister.
Watching the teens flex their stems makes for excellent reading, the idea is intoxicating (in a non-Deadly Nightshade way). The insertion of regular social media updates show the world's insights into the Greenfingers phenomenon and how we all see trends and memes and respond to them. It's really well done.
And on top of that, it's quite an exciting drama, with romance and envinronmental issues mixed in. Gabrielle is a Greta-Jesus combo as progenitor and inspirational head of the Greenfingers movement, Theo is the most likeable of the leads, as the everyboy voice of reason. Hester grew on me, she's rather insufferable to start with, unrealistically so, but I enjoyed her transformation, as well as seeing young people connect with nature and release their powers.
It really was an 'if only' by the end... sigh. Would be lovely if this could get people talking. And thinking.
For ages 12 and above. With thanks to Walker Books for providing a sample reading copy.
queltynoedd's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
animelanie's review
4.0
Read for PRC
Really interesting dystopian focusing on the current climate change issues - enjoyed reading it.
Review for ReadPlus
Written by author Lauren James, founder of the Climate Fiction Writers League, this novel is part of the effort to raise climate change activism awareness. This science fiction dystopian is told from the perspectives of Theo and Hester, with articles, tweets, blogs and other media snippets intermingled throughout. Readers will recognise the influence of Greta Thunberg in this extremely relevant novel regarding climate change and activism. The story is well paced, moving between the two main characters seamlessly. Ideal for readers of other dystopian stories where teenagers are impacted by some environmental or viral factor, and develop powers, such as 'The Darkest Minds' series by Alexandra Bracken.
Themes: Dystopian; Science Fiction; Climate Change; Global Warming; LGBTQIA+; Activism.
Really interesting dystopian focusing on the current climate change issues - enjoyed reading it.
Review for ReadPlus
Written by author Lauren James, founder of the Climate Fiction Writers League, this novel is part of the effort to raise climate change activism awareness. This science fiction dystopian is told from the perspectives of Theo and Hester, with articles, tweets, blogs and other media snippets intermingled throughout. Readers will recognise the influence of Greta Thunberg in this extremely relevant novel regarding climate change and activism. The story is well paced, moving between the two main characters seamlessly. Ideal for readers of other dystopian stories where teenagers are impacted by some environmental or viral factor, and develop powers, such as 'The Darkest Minds' series by Alexandra Bracken.
Themes: Dystopian; Science Fiction; Climate Change; Global Warming; LGBTQIA+; Activism.
ellathescarletwitch's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
rosy57's review
2.0
Interesting concept but not very interesting language, I found that we were spending time with the duller characters to be honest.
mijsfranssen's review
5.0
My first read of 2023 :)
I loved this book. It is an extremely clever book that is filled with suspense and exitement. It was interesting and a definite page-turner. Even with a touch of magical realism, it felt real. And that is scary, because in some ways it is. This book is not just about resistance of a group of kids that are able to grow plants, but it is also about the way that climate change is slowly making our planet inhabitable. I won't spend too much time on it, since you can read about it everywhere, including this book. I loved the subtle references to her earlier books, like names of people or events that happend that were reported on. The characters were interesting and three-dimensional. The representation of both POC and LGBTQ+ groups were GREAT as always in Lauren's books. It is not a big thing that characters struggle with, but just a part of who they are, which is so great to see in YA books. As always, Lauren James' writing was terrific. She is truly amazing and I cannot wait to see what she does next.
I loved this book. It is an extremely clever book that is filled with suspense and exitement. It was interesting and a definite page-turner. Even with a touch of magical realism, it felt real. And that is scary, because in some ways it is. This book is not just about resistance of a group of kids that are able to grow plants, but it is also about the way that climate change is slowly making our planet inhabitable. I won't spend too much time on it, since you can read about it everywhere, including this book. I loved the subtle references to her earlier books, like names of people or events that happend that were reported on. The characters were interesting and three-dimensional. The representation of both POC and LGBTQ+ groups were GREAT as always in Lauren's books. It is not a big thing that characters struggle with, but just a part of who they are, which is so great to see in YA books. As always, Lauren James' writing was terrific. She is truly amazing and I cannot wait to see what she does next.
alongreader's review
4.0
Here's the thing about Lauren James (forgive the rambling):
I love her books. Some more than others, but I haven't read any that I didn't love. All the ones I've read have a connecting thread in a (fictional but how I wish it wasn't!) TV series called Loch and Ness. It's a bigger feature in some than in others, but it's always there, tying everything together into a shared universe.
But if they're all in a shared universe, then some things that happen in my second favourite of her books kind of render this one a little bit pointless. (Notice I'm not saying which one, because spoilers.) If all her books are in the same universe, then that book is after this one, and everything that happened in this one ended up not really mattering very much in the end. (Also, possibly explaining the major background plot point in that one...hmmm.) Maybe they're just all close enough on the multiverse tree that they have the same TV show.
None of this means I didn't enjoy this! I really did. Lauren comes up with such clever plots, things that seem - not confusing, that's not what I mean, but it seems there's no connection between things - at first, until you find the clue that makes everything fall into place. Hester is absolutely my favourite character in this; the growth she goes through, her strength and determination are amazing. Gabrielle was a little full on for me, but I admired her passion, and I thought her ultimate solution was amazing, really clever.
I am a little curious about when this is set - unless I missed it, there's no date given, and it reads like present day except all of a sudden there's tourist trips to Mars! And self driving cars! (I want both of those, by the way.) Whenever it is, social media works much the same way as it does now, as evidenced by the inserts with quizzes, messages and forum posts, a touch I really enjoyed. Of course, we know Lauren enjoys using social media in her writing...now I'm waiting for the novel that ties everything together into one fantastic new read!
I really enjoyed this. I love the cover, it'll look so good next to her other ones. I can't wait to read everything else she ever publishes, set in this universe or not!
I love her books. Some more than others, but I haven't read any that I didn't love. All the ones I've read have a connecting thread in a (fictional but how I wish it wasn't!) TV series called Loch and Ness. It's a bigger feature in some than in others, but it's always there, tying everything together into a shared universe.
But if they're all in a shared universe, then some things that happen in my second favourite of her books kind of render this one a little bit pointless. (Notice I'm not saying which one, because spoilers.) If all her books are in the same universe, then that book is after this one, and everything that happened in this one ended up not really mattering very much in the end. (Also, possibly explaining the major background plot point in that one...hmmm.) Maybe they're just all close enough on the multiverse tree that they have the same TV show.
None of this means I didn't enjoy this! I really did. Lauren comes up with such clever plots, things that seem - not confusing, that's not what I mean, but it seems there's no connection between things - at first, until you find the clue that makes everything fall into place. Hester is absolutely my favourite character in this; the growth she goes through, her strength and determination are amazing. Gabrielle was a little full on for me, but I admired her passion, and I thought her ultimate solution was amazing, really clever.
I am a little curious about when this is set - unless I missed it, there's no date given, and it reads like present day except all of a sudden there's tourist trips to Mars! And self driving cars! (I want both of those, by the way.) Whenever it is, social media works much the same way as it does now, as evidenced by the inserts with quizzes, messages and forum posts, a touch I really enjoyed. Of course, we know Lauren enjoys using social media in her writing...now I'm waiting for the novel that ties everything together into one fantastic new read!
I really enjoyed this. I love the cover, it'll look so good next to her other ones. I can't wait to read everything else she ever publishes, set in this universe or not!
bazer63's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
A lot of fun but certain themes are under explored considering this is basically a manifesto plus plant powers.
Wish we saw more of Gabrielle's Point of View.
I want to turn into a lichen too.
It is incredibly funny that the characters in this book do eco-terrorism then in the bit at the end the the author is like switch your lightbulbs.
Based mostly but weird that Dalex still exists at the end
Wish we saw more of Gabrielle's Point of View.
It is incredibly funny that the characters in this book do eco-terrorism then in the bit at the end the the author is like switch your lightbulbs.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror