The City of Ember (Book of Ember #1)

Reader reviewed by Kendall

The City Of  Ember is a dark place where there is no light except for the streetlights and homes, but they often go out. The people of the City of Ember are always wondering if that in time the lights will go out forever.  A 12 year old girl named Lina has always thought that there is another world outside of Ember so she and her friend Doon decide to go out on a journey to find the other city.


I wound recomnend this book to anyone that likes to read about adventure and mystery!


     

Reader reviewed by Misty

City of Ember is about a colony of people who live in the year 241.
Their small city is on the verge of disaster: supplies are running out
and they may be loding power. If the lights go out they will be plunged
into absolute darkness and be unable to survive. Lina and Doon, two 12
year olds recently placed in jobs (Lina as a Messenger, Doon in the
Pipeworks) set about rescuing the city of Ember.



I got sucked into this book much quicker than I thought I was going
to, and even though some things were predictable, and some of the
"messages" were a bit too heavy-handed for me, all in all it was really
entertaining and a great book for the age group. The tension remains pretty taut through out the story, and even where the story becomes predictable, it is still told well.  There are a few others
in the series (The People of Sparks is #2), which City of Ember has me
eager to read.  I am very curious to know how the characters' story is continued, and how they continue to confront their new understanding of their world.

Reader reviewed by KitKat

I, personally, enjoyed this book. My best friend hated it. It is a bit on the dry side, not exactly heart-stopping action, but it still has a nicely paced plot, believable characters, and an interesting premise. This is definitly a book that will appeal to a few people but bore a few also... read it and decide for yourself.

Reader reviewed by Cara

The City of Ember is place where all the lights go out at 9 each night, everyone rises early for breakfast, and recycling is a way of life. Lately though, the lights have begun flickering. Supplies are getting shorter and some foods are no longer available.

Until their 12th year, the children of the City of Ember go to school. But at the end of that year, they are assigned the jobs they will do for years after, perhaps to the end of their lives. Lina yearns to be a Messenger, running free in the streets, learning the secrets of the city. Doon wants desperately to be an electrician's assistant or a pipeworker, because he dreams of fixing the ancient, failing generators of the city.

When each receives the assignment the other wants, they switch jobs, and begin a conspiracy that will not end until they learn how to save the entire city. Along the way, they solve an ancient puzzle, defeat the greed and subterfuge of the Mayor and his minions, and discover a much wider world than either had ever dreamed existed.

Reader reviewed by Dede

This book is a pretty good imaginative tale. The City of Ember is crumbling and dying. The book follows Doon, who is a mechanically inclined 12 year old and Lina, who is a free spirited girl. On assignment day for the city, Doon gets messenger and Lina gets Pipeworks worker. Each wants the job of the other and they switch. When Ember was made, the builders left instructions for what to do when the city started breaking down and left it in a box that would open only when it was time. Lina's grandma finds the box and Lina's little sister Poppy chews on the instructions before Lina gets them from her. Lina and Doon team up with half eaten instructions to figure out what they need to do. They do eventually get it, and have to leave together before telling anyone what they have found, due to a corrupt mayor trying to stop them. So Lina, Doon and Poppy face the adventure by themselves and learn of a place that was beyond their imagination.

Reader reviewed by two sided freek

Very well written and the plot is epually strong. the only problem i have are the characters, they're too static, unable to change. however this book captured my attention and i read it all in one read(with tiny breaks). A story about Lina and Doon and how they make their journey to save their dark city from going out sompletely.