Children's & Young Adult book reviews by a rather odd duo.
Posts tagged Ally Condie
Guest Review: Marin
October 18, 2011
by Ruby
Crossed by Ally Condie (Book 2 Matched Trilogy)
(Review based on Advanced Reader Copy)
In the sequel to Matched, star-crossed lovers, Cassia and Ky, escape the stringent rules of the Society intending to live happily ever after, but life in the outside world isn’t what they expected and perilous adventures await.
In Matched, Ky and Cassia risk life and limb escaping the vigilant and watchful eyes of the Society to find each other. They weren’t supposed to fall in love, but now that they have Cassia is forced to come to the realization that the Society’s true aims are not as benign as they appear. Two perilous escapes and long treks across dangerous wilderness with strangers find these young lovers back together and searching for the rebels.
The alternating points of view allow the reader to learn more about the motivations of Cassia and Ky. However, this narrative choice also occasionally interrupts the flow, leaving the reader with a choppy story. Crossed is not a strong stand-alone story because there isn’t much information about what exactly the Society is and why Cassia wants to join the rebellion. However, this action-packed adventure introduces new characters and enticing possibilities for the conclusion in the final book of the trilogy.
Crossed will be released on November 1st, 2011.
-Marin
Ages 12+
ISBN: 9780525423652
Also available as an eBook.
Yet Another (Good!) Dystopian Romance
February 24, 2011
by Jenny
Matched by Ally Condie
What if everything you knew was chosen for you–food, clothing, music, career, even a spouse?
Cassia is an ordinary girl living an everyday life in the Society, a “perfect” community run through predetermination. Everything is determined by Society Officials based on statistics and probability. Efficiency and equality are the goals, and choice has been taken out of almost every equation. It is the path humanity has taken for the sake of safety, as the border wars outside Society’s limits clearly show, and Cassia has no qualms with the choices made for her. Until, that is, the night of her Match Banquet…
When Cassia catches a glitch in her Match microchip and sees the face of not one but two possible romantic matches, she knows something must be wrong. Suddenly everything is up in the air, and the questions start to grow. As her perfect image of the Society starts to fracture, Cassia discovers the beauty and strength in forbidden knowledge and the ability to choose, and her small internal struggle to remain balanced becomes an overwhelming external need to live her own life.
When you mix ideas and images from a bunch of classic dystopian and “perfect society” novels like Fahrenheit 451 (Bradbury), The Giver (Lowry), and 1984 (Orwell)–and then throw in some contemporary favorites like Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies series–it’s hard not to have a hit. Throw in a love triangle to rival Katniss, Peeta, and Gale from The Hunger Games and you’ve got a bestseller on your hands (see the NYTimes list). It’s a solid and enjoyable page-turner, and as only the first in a trilogy, it should go far by publishing standards. Definitely recommended for fans of today’s futuristic, dystopian sub-genre, especially with the promise of more action and star-crossed romance to come!
The sequel, Crossed, is set to be published on November 1, 2011.
Age 12+
Copyright November 2010
ISBN: 9780525423645
Available as an eBook
Image from www.penguingroup.com