Awaken by Katie Kacvinsky

Awaken by Katie Kacvinsky
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
320 pages
genre- science fiction
learn about it (shelfari) (goodreads)
buy it here
rating-4


In maddie's world there is no face to face meetings, everything done throughout the computer, whether its soccer practice, a date, or going to school. It all happens at home through virtual realties. Maddie dosnt feel like shes missing anything. Theses virtual realitys are her reality. Theres no need to risk danger and leave her home! Until she meets Justin that is. He shows her how different the world outside their doors are. That it's unnatural to be isolated, and Maddie is starting to realize that everything around her has been a lie. That the world isn't dangerous, but beautiful and breathtaking and... Alive.


There's nothing like a good Dystopian novel on a rainy day. Haha. And as you can guess, Awaken didn't disappoint. It reminded me a lot of Uglies and was a new spin on a familiar type of novel. It was interesting to see Maddie really hatch out of her sheltered reality and see life for what it really is. I liked how Maddie was raised to on opposite ends of the scale. With her mother who loved to go outside, read traditional books, talk face to face. (although still not on Justin's level) 


And with her dad on the other side of the spectrum, being the person that created on line realties.  (I don't really understand how her parents got along... but hey, it works...)


Maddie already thinks that being online is wrong, but theirs not much she can do about it, considering she's in house arrest for joining a rebel group a few years ago and putting the entire online system in jeopardy. But this is different, real. There are hundreds of people who disagree with the system. There are clubs and coffee shops and study groups, and other things that are normal to us, but completely new to Maddie. And her feelings for justin are real to. It makes you realize the simple worldly beauties we take for granted every day.  

so I recommend you pick it up. It's a good summer read, and was great. :D

Dana