The Last Book in the Universe

The Last Book In The Universe By Rodman Philbrick was, in my opinion,an amazing book. It has the perfect mix of action,adventure,and drama. Rodman Philbrick elaborately represents the idea of what the world would be like without books. In my opinion,that's a scary place. Now I'm no chicken but a world with out books would be intolerable. The theme of "what if" brings this future dystopia to life in the minds of Philbrick's young adult readers. Rodman Philbrick show's aspects of many things that could happen in the future. One natural disaster could bring the whole world tumbling down. Genetic improvement could cause Many cures to illnesses to be lost. The loss of books could lead to people to lose their memory, and many other disasters.
The Protagonist and narrator is a boy named Spaz, who lives in The Urb. The Urb is what the world could look like in the future. A pitch black sky due to smog. Skyscrapers Stripped of Their Exteriors because of erosion. Nothing but dirt or concrete for the ground. A run down and horrific place surrounding a paradise, Eden. Eden is what the world is today, without the genetically improved Proovs. Eden has blue sky's,green grass, and tall trees. In a word, it is, Perfection. Eden's main purpose is being home to genetically improved human beings (called proovs) and is restricted from anyone living in the Urb. When Spaz get's word that Bean, his adopted sister, is dying from a blood sickness, we call leukemia, He Set's out With an old gummy named Ryter and a stackbox child called Little Face, to see Bean before she dies. After running into a Proov named Lanaya. The Four continue on their journey to find Bean. Upon finding her they learn that Bean is beyond the Urb's medical help. Lanaya, after taking a liking to Bean, Decides to take Bean to Eden to be cured. But will Eden allow it?
The book displays the many "What if's" of the future. It displays that if we lose books we will lose not only our knowledge but our memory as well. Although it may sound scary, it's true. I completely Agree with Mr. Philbrick's message in this novel. We need books! WE just simply can't do without them. No matter what we think, we can't. Philbrick's message rings true to all readers. The future is a scary place. It's up to us to change that. I HIGHLY Recommend you read this book. Not only so you can see what i'm talking about for yourself, but because it really makes you think. "What if?" And so i will not leave you with a quote from the novel.
"Do not despair my friend, today is theirs, but the future is ours"

Reader reviewed by Crayton

there is a kid named Spaz living in a demolished town and he needs to find his non-blood sister bean. So he heads out on a long adventure with an elder writer named Ryter. He has many obstacles in his way. Does he ever find his sister ,Bean before she dies?! It's killing me that you are not reading this book right now!

Reader reviewed by Jonah

The Last Book In The Universe is one of the best books to read if you love suspense and places setting place in the future. I'm 14 years old who does not like to read books, so when my English teacher told me that I had to choose one of the following options, I got really annoyed. When I chose this book it changed my perspective dramatically about reading. The story is set in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian future city, called The Urb, which has been disturbed by an  earthquake known as "The Big Shake". The Urb is plagued by poverty ,
gang warfare, and the use of mindprobes, which are analogous to hard
drugs and which enable users to temporarily escape their harsh lives.
Genetically improved people, called "proovs," live happily in a place
called Eden. The Main characters in this story are Spaz, Ryter, Lanaya, and Bean and Little face. When Spaz finds out that his stepsister Bean is diagnosed of leukemia, Spaz, Ryter, Lanaya, and Little Face set on a journey to find Bean and take her to the peaceful place of Eden for genetic surgery that will cure her cancer. This book is one of the best suspense and future books that you will ever read.

Reader reviewed by the book muncher

This is another kind of futuristic society. Entertainment comes in the form of mindprobe needles: just stick one in and its like youre inside a movie. But Spaz doesnt know that, because he has reactions to the needles. Books are the stuff of legend; theyre from the backtimes, before the Big Shake. Spaz lives in the Crypts under the protection of Billy. But he has to steal from other people to maintain his position there. One day he is sent to rob a man named Ryter, an old gummy who lives in the Stackbox with some very crazy ideas. Spaz brushes this man off as crazy.

But Spaz soon receives a message from a runner that his sister Bean is sick. He desperately wants to see her again before she dies, and since Billy doesnt offer any help, he sets off with Ryter and a five-year-old kid they call Little Face. Together, they travel to Bean and her family, only to discover that Bean cannot be cured. They seek aid from a proov names Lanaya. She takes them into Eden, where doctors are able to cure Bean of her leukemia. However, conflict arises and all of them are eventually thrown out with the exception of Little Face, who is hidden by Lanayas parents.

I would hate to live in the society presented in this novel, because, well, I love books. And I immensely enjoyed this one. It is very thought-provoking, as are many futuristic novels. The ending was mostly happy but more hopeful than anything else. I think there is a great message in this book: that we should always hope for a better future and strive to make it better. I highly recommend this book to all thoughtful readers.

Reader reviewed by Kay

The Last Book in the Universe
By Rodman Philbrick
Published by The Blue Sky press

I loved this book because it made me feel like I never wanted to put it down because if I did it might not be there when I came back for it. This book is about Spaz, a teenager who lives in the future, a future of grey skys, concrete, and acid rain, after something called the big shake destroyed earth. Oh, and this book is told from Spazs point of view. Spaz, accompanied by an old man and a feral child, must journey through a land of ruins and wild mobs to see his sister who lies on her death bed. But that is not the only struggle that is taking place in the future that Spaz lives in. Someone is sneaking mind probes (a kind of virtual world that is loaded into your head) into the city were Spaz lives which are rotting peoples brains and making them loose their memories so that they revert back to their animal instincts. This book is very fast paced but yet I understood Spazs emotions very well. Spaz has a lot of sadness and anger along with a bit of self-dislike that he must overcome and this makes for on-the-edge-of-your-seat reading but the end is so touching it makes up for any reservations about the book going by so fast. Rodman Philbrick sums up Spazs life so well that it makes this one of my favorite books that he wrote. Of all of his books this is probably my favorite one. I wish he would write a sequel although it would be unfair to ask him not to enjoy his time in Florida (He and his wife divide their time between Maine and the Florida Keys). Rodman Philbrick started writing in sixth grade and if Im lucky he will keep writing for a long time yet.
One of the reasons I loved this book is because of the way Spaz tells it. He is full of emotions and his emotions are very catchy. All through to book I felt as though I was really Spaz, sharing his dreams, hopes, and fears. I think that the writer sends a clear message that its important to look to the future but never forget your past because without that you can never have a future. One of my favorite scenes in the book is when Spaz and Ryter, the old man, are talking about what it used to look like before the big shake. In it Ryter tells Spaz The only real treasure is inside your head& memories are better that diamonds and nobody can steal them from you.
There are several other charters besides Spaz. There is Lanaya, a proov (genetically improved person) who is a snob but very brave, proud but a natural leader. Then there is Little Face, a feral child who follows Spaz around and can only say one word. I could not forget Bean, Spazs sister, an exceptionally smart person. And last but not least, Ryter, an old man that writes everything thing down in a book and has, as Spaz puts it a white beard and a walking stick and a heart so big it wont stop him thinking he can change the world by writing things down in a book that no one will ever read.
All through the book Spaz argues with Ryter about why Ryter is writing the book. Spaz keeps insisting that no one with ever read it but Ryter keeps trying to explaining why he is writing the book. In the end it becomes Spaz writing the book and its up to you to read the book and find out why.

Reader reviewed by Bettina

Spaz is a kid living in the future. the future world is dirty and there are different areas ruled by different gangs. There are also mind-rotting virtual reality devices called mind-probes. Worst of all, there are no books.

When Spaz finds out that his old family's daughter is sick, he is determined to go across the other gang's territories to save her. Along with him comes an old man called Ryter that is writing a book, a little kid that Spaz calls "Little Face", and a proov (a genetically improved being) that surprisingly wants to help. Spaz finds new things about himself and astonishing information about the proovs along the way.

I thought that this book was pretty good. It is an intresting idea of the future. I hope that our future will go forward and not backwards. I can't imagine life without books.

Reader reviewed by Kaylee

Book Review on The Last Book in the Universe
By: Kaylee


The Last Book in the Universe by: Rodman Philbrick, is a wonderful book! Spaz (the main character) goes on a long adventure to save his sister, Bean, from the horrible disease that she has had the whole of her life, in which is killing her! Ryter, and old man that knows a lot of things from our time, accompanies Spaz on the daring adventure. Then a little boy, that Spaz calls Little Face, comes along too. Then the three save a proov (a perfect person from the perfect place called Eden) girl, and, strangely, she decides to help them save Bean. You will have to read this fascinating book to find out if the group saves Bean.

The authors purpose was hard to find, but I think I found it! Rodman Philbrick, the author, wrote this story to point out to his readers that love for a person can carry you farther than you can imagine. Also, that something is never forgotten, but merrily is stored in your mind forever and ever. Though he also could have been saying that if we (the people) dont stop polluting than bad things can happen and the old world (our world now) will be stored deep in your mind, but not forgotten.

The Last Book in the Universe takes place about hundreds of years from now! Supposedly a HUGE earthquake wiped out the world, and everything is damaged and smog covered. That is except a place called Eden, that resembles what we live in today, with grass and trees, and a great big blue sky!

I think that Rodman Philbrick did a wonderful job of creating this novel! He was very successful in this book! I think he did well because of the love, tragedy and story line of the book. I thought it was a great book, when you find out what hes trying to tell you.

This book is a good book to have in your household to remind you of what we need to do to keep this world safe. To savor the grass, the trees, the nature, everything. This book is a keeper in you family library.

In conclusion, I liked the book because of all the funny words, the deep meaning, the confusion, and that theres no other book like it! A definite keeper in the household! The Last Book in the Universe by: Rodman Philbrick.