Review Detail

I loved The Giver and this book reminded me of that story in many ways. The way the Society controls all the information, the Big Brother aspect, and the way fear is used to motivate obedience are all familiar hallmarks of a dystopian book and Ms. Condie builds her world seamlessly on this foundation.

While the worldbuilding is all-encompassing and hits all the right notes, the true magic of this story lies in the characters. We feel immediately connected to them, and I appreciated that Cassia begins the story accepting everything the Society tells her and feeling excited about the choices the Society is making for her. When a seemingly small mistake by the Society presents Cassia with an alternate destiny she'd never considered, we slowly inch along that path with her, one tiny decision at a time, until near the end, we're running headlong toward disaster with her and we, like her, can't imagine living any other way. It's a brilliant character arc.

I also really loved that both love interests, Xander and Ky, are really likable. There's no clear winner, really, and that makes it poignant and realistic and so compelling.

One of the things that I think sets this book apart from other dystopians is the use of poetry, mostly by Dylan Thomas, to inspire the characters. The author expertly uses the poems to breathe life into the characters, to challenge their acceptance of their world, and to make it heartbreakingly clear that the cost of allowing the government to safely make every choice for you is a huge piece of your soul.

I have to also give props to the writing style. Ms. Condie has a fluid, lovely style that never gets in the way of telling the story. I was hooked from the first word. I *felt* the poetry, *saw* the drawings Ky makes to explain his feelings, and was just captivated throughout. I can't wait to read the sequel.