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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Eleanor's grandfather is a prepper, even running evacuation drills with her and her brothers. When Eleanor hears about an asteroid heading for Earth she buries herself in online research about the event and tells her friend Mack about it. They start an after school club to prepare their classmates for the impending potential end of the world. Eleanor starts to obsess about the event, to the downfall of her schoolwork and against her father's wishes.
An interesting book about the power of online resources. Eleanor is a likeable character who takes the reader on the same "ride" she's on.
An interesting book about the power of online resources. Eleanor is a likeable character who takes the reader on the same "ride" she's on.
I wanted this novel to end differently, but understood that as a middle grade novel there were certain restrictions that necessitated the end that did finally come. Still, a good book with a more complicated story line that what we're used to in contemporary middle grade.
I wasn’t loving this book. I felt like maybe I was too much of a mom to be able to get invested. I don’t love books where the adults are far removed and not trustworthy, and I was worried this was headed in this direction because even when the MC gave all the signs of being obsessed with the end of the world as we know it, no adult was stepping in to truly get to the bottom if it and give her real support in the way she needed or to ask her the right questions. And with everything said about finding reliable internet sources, this girl wasn’t doing that! And there was so much bad science included that was just taken as truth because an adult with a degree said it. I was getting frustrated.
But then the end turned it around in all the right ways. And the final messages about handling it when you make a mistake, and the importance of friendship, and the value of being prepared without panicking, annd finding/acknowledging what is actually stressing you out all redeemed the book for me. It might be a very good tool for kids struggling with similar anxieties, especially when read and discussed with a safe adult.
And at the end the author did give much more details about finding reliable internet sites and to be wary of things or people who play too much to your emotions, which I very much appreciated.
But then the end turned it around in all the right ways. And the final messages about handling it when you make a mistake, and the importance of friendship, and the value of being prepared without panicking, annd finding/acknowledging what is actually stressing you out all redeemed the book for me. It might be a very good tool for kids struggling with similar anxieties, especially when read and discussed with a safe adult.
And at the end the author did give much more details about finding reliable internet sites and to be wary of things or people who play too much to your emotions, which I very much appreciated.
I enjoyed this book and do appreciate all the resources listed at the end, especially how to recognize legitimate sources (speaking my librarian love language). The only thing I wish had been delved into more in the book is that Elle was suffering from anxiety and though her father suggested she should see a therapist, I wish that had been followed up on in the book.
Oh, and while I appreciated the shout out to diversity, I felt like some of the descriptions of people by their race felt like they had no purpose. I am on the fence—it’s probably a good thing cus it breaks you out of defaulting to whiteness as everyone’s race but there was no real connector to saying why race was brought up with secondary characters we only meet once or twice.
Oh, and while I appreciated the shout out to diversity, I felt like some of the descriptions of people by their race felt like they had no purpose. I am on the fence—it’s probably a good thing cus it breaks you out of defaulting to whiteness as everyone’s race but there was no real connector to saying why race was brought up with secondary characters we only meet once or twice.
Middle school angst, which is probably pretty real for a middle school audience, but I didn't enjoy it all that much.
Eleanor isn't really into her grandpa's prepper activities. She doesn't enjoy keeping a bugout bag or any of grandpa's little test runs. Then she reads that an asteroid is going to hit earth in the spring. Suddenly it is The End of the World As We Know It and she wants to be prepared. She starts reading everything she can find from the Harvard professor who has predicted the asteroid strike. She even convinces her friend Mack to start a survivalist club at school. Then she and Londyn start a newsletter with information about the asteroid and tips for survival. As the date of impact gets closer, things escalate and end up with Eleanor and Londyn hijacking morning announcements and getting suspended.
I wasn't sure what to expect out of this story, but I enjoyed Eleanor's obsession. The reader, just like Eleanor's father, knows this is a hoax and that we shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet. Eleanor however is convinced and wants to convince others. The interesting thing is that she truly believes the end of the world is coming and in a way is looking forward to it. Because she doesn't do well in school or have a lot of friends, she actually believes things would be better in a post-apocalyptic world. There are definitely kids like Eleanor who do obsess over things, just maybe not to the extent she takes it. You can truly feel her devastation when the world does not end.
I wasn't sure what to expect out of this story, but I enjoyed Eleanor's obsession. The reader, just like Eleanor's father, knows this is a hoax and that we shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet. Eleanor however is convinced and wants to convince others. The interesting thing is that she truly believes the end of the world is coming and in a way is looking forward to it. Because she doesn't do well in school or have a lot of friends, she actually believes things would be better in a post-apocalyptic world. There are definitely kids like Eleanor who do obsess over things, just maybe not to the extent she takes it. You can truly feel her devastation when the world does not end.
Despite a slow first 1/2 of the book I have to give it 4 stars. The author does a great job wrapping up the story in a great way. It is a solid middle school read.
I read this with my daughter, she enjoyed it. The story was well written.