Story Description:
Doubleday Canada|June 26,
2012|Hardcover|ISBN: 978-0-385-67663-2
From a stunning new
literary voice comes a brilliant debut novel that created an international
auction frenzy, with sales in twenty-seven countries to date, about a young
girl growing up in extraordinary times.
On a seemingly ordinary
Saturday morning, Julia and her family wake to discover, along with the rest of
the world, that the rotation of the earth has suddenly begun to slow. Set against this threat to normal life, The Age of Miracles maps the effects of
catastrophes big and small on the lives of ordinary people, and in particular,
on a young girl. Extraordinary for its
original concept, unforgettable characters, and the grace, elegance and beauty
of Karen Thompson Walker’s prose, The Age
of Miracles is a mesmerizing story of family turmoil, young love, and
coming-of-age set against an upending of life as we know it.
My Review:
Eleven-year-old, Julia is
learning to cope with the many changes that accompany growing up. Her very best friend, Hanna seems to have
deserted her, her parents aren’t getting along all that well, she sees her
father with another woman in the other woman’s home while he is supposed to be
at work, and the boy she has a crush on, Seth Moreno, acknowledges her one day
and totally ignores her the next.
Then Julia is forced to
deal with a real life, scary situation.
On a Saturday morning, Julia and her parents, along with the rest of the
world, learn that the earth’s rotation is slowing down which means the length
of each day is getting longer and longer and no one seems to know why. Some scientists think they have it all
figured out while other scientists think they’re wrong. Regardless, this is real, it is happening,
and the days are getting longer and longer causing all sorts of problems. This lengthening of days goes on for so long
that it now takes multiple twenty-four hour periods to see the sun. The earth’s magnetic field has shifted and
some people are getting sick, folks cannot go outside during the lengthy hours
of sunlight as the sun is burning their skin through their clothing. Families, governments, stores, and schools
all try to adapt the best way they can.
Kids are going to school at night, sometimes during the day, people are
stock-piling food, water, and batteries, thinking the end of the world is
coming, while others are moving their families to live in communes.
The story is narrated by
eleven-year-old, Julia so really more of the story is about coming-of-age but
also part sci-fi and part young adult fiction.
However, as a full grown adult I did thoroughly enjoy the book. It is beautifully written and I will be
recommending it to my friends.
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