Series: The Young World #1
Author: Chris Weitz
Published by: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on 29th July 2014
Genre: Post-Apocalyptic
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
*I received a copy of this book free from the publisher via Netgalley for review consideration, this in no way affects my opinion of the book.*
Goodreads Synopsis: After a mysterious Sickness wipes out the rest of the population, the young survivors assemble into tightly run tribes. Jefferson, the reluctant leader of the Washington Square tribe, and Donna, the girl he's secretly in love with, have carved out a precarious existence among the chaos. But when another tribe member discovers a clue that may hold the cure to the Sickness, five teens set out on a life-altering road trip to save humankind.
The tribe exchanges gunfire with enemy gangs, escapes cults and militias, braves the wilds of the subway and Central Park...and discovers truths they could never have imagined.
Source: Publisher
*I received a copy of this book free from the publisher via Netgalley for review consideration, this in no way affects my opinion of the book.*
Goodreads Synopsis: After a mysterious Sickness wipes out the rest of the population, the young survivors assemble into tightly run tribes. Jefferson, the reluctant leader of the Washington Square tribe, and Donna, the girl he's secretly in love with, have carved out a precarious existence among the chaos. But when another tribe member discovers a clue that may hold the cure to the Sickness, five teens set out on a life-altering road trip to save humankind.
The tribe exchanges gunfire with enemy gangs, escapes cults and militias, braves the wilds of the subway and Central Park...and discovers truths they could never have imagined.
My Thoughts: I love post-Apocalypic stories and so I jumped at the chance to read this and I had a jolly good time reading it.
In this post-apocalyptic world, all the adults and pre-pubescent children have been wiped out by a virus, leaving the world occupied by teenagers. Sounds more like a horror story to me ;-). The basis of this book has been done before, many times and it reminds me very much of the show Jeremiah - I loved that show.
The story is told from two perspectives in alternating chapters - Jefferson and Donna. Jefferson is the newly minted leader of his tribe, his is a good guy and if he were twenty years older - a NILF, once you have read the book you'll get it. Donna is a very snarky, 'tell it like it is' young lady. I really enjoyed the diverse cast of characters and the relationships they shared with each other, I found them all believable and real. When I say diverse, I mean diverse, there are black, Asian and gay characters and none of them are stereotyped. Quite refreshing really.
There were many intense moments in the book, especially the end which has me eagerly awaiting book two. Don't worry, the book isn't all dismal and scary, as there is plenty that left me giggling and plenty of pop culture references that had me thinking to myself, 'yep, I've seen that movie' or 'I've read that book' and pop culture references always make me think of Farscape, so that is never a bad thing.
The novel presents some good commentary on our current society: from our absolute dependance on technology, prejudice and sexism. I like it when a book makes me stop and think, and Weitz made some very good points that definately made me think.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I recommend it to anyone who loves stories about life post-apocalypse or even quest/survival stories.
In this post-apocalyptic world, all the adults and pre-pubescent children have been wiped out by a virus, leaving the world occupied by teenagers. Sounds more like a horror story to me ;-). The basis of this book has been done before, many times and it reminds me very much of the show Jeremiah - I loved that show.
The story is told from two perspectives in alternating chapters - Jefferson and Donna. Jefferson is the newly minted leader of his tribe, his is a good guy and if he were twenty years older - a NILF, once you have read the book you'll get it. Donna is a very snarky, 'tell it like it is' young lady. I really enjoyed the diverse cast of characters and the relationships they shared with each other, I found them all believable and real. When I say diverse, I mean diverse, there are black, Asian and gay characters and none of them are stereotyped. Quite refreshing really.
There were many intense moments in the book, especially the end which has me eagerly awaiting book two. Don't worry, the book isn't all dismal and scary, as there is plenty that left me giggling and plenty of pop culture references that had me thinking to myself, 'yep, I've seen that movie' or 'I've read that book' and pop culture references always make me think of Farscape, so that is never a bad thing.
The novel presents some good commentary on our current society: from our absolute dependance on technology, prejudice and sexism. I like it when a book makes me stop and think, and Weitz made some very good points that definately made me think.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and I recommend it to anyone who loves stories about life post-apocalypse or even quest/survival stories.
I've had my eye in this book and I really enjoyed your review. I'm glad to hear that you liked this book. I hope I get to read it soon.
ReplyDeleteMonique @ Mo_Books
Thanks Monique, I am glad you enjoyed it. I hope you get to read it soon too :)
DeleteI loooooved Farscape (except the end) :) I think pop culture references in books feels good when it's published, but after a few years, it definitely dates the novel. I'll read this one, thanks for the review !
ReplyDelete