In A NutshellAre you afraid of the dark? Be glad you don't live in Ember, then.
Jeanne DuPrau's 2003 young adult novel The City of Ember paints a vivid picture of life in an underground city (named—you guessed it—Ember). Youngsters Lina and Doon have guessed that something is wrong because the lights are dimming, the supplies are running out, and there seems to be no escape.
Yep, things in Ember are not quite what they seem to be. Nobody in Lina and Doon's generation has ever known anything other than life in their city, ringed by absolute darkness outside its borders. Nobody knows how the generator works to keep the lights on—or why it's failing. Nobody knows why the cans of food are running out. In fact, a functioning Ember is all they have ever known. And as the electricity begins to fail, and the food stores dwindle, Lina and Doon must try to put the puzzle pieces together and figure out what's going wrong before it's too late to save their city.
Sure, it's a simple enough premise—a classic doomsday scenario. But what DuPraudoes with the doomsday scenario gives this book a unique twist. How's that? Well, the survivors of the apocalypse don't know that they're living in a post-apocalyptic era. It turns out that Ember was constructed to be the last refuge of humans should disaster ruin the world… but none of the current residents of Ember know any of this. They're literally and figuratively in the dark. Life in Ember goes on the way it always has (well, except for the terrifying disruptions of electricity and the shortages of supplies). And since the people of Ember don't know what's been lost, how can they begin to solve the mystery of their existence?
If that doesn't sound like a recipe for some critical love, then we don't know what will.The City of Ember has nabbed all sorts of accolades, including being named anAmerican Library Association Notable Book, a Kirkus 2003 Editor's Choice, Publisher's Weekly Flying Start, and a bunch of others, too. Plus they made a movie of it in 2008 starring Bill Murray. And in case you haven't gotten enough of the characters or the world, there are three books that follow: The People of Sparks, The Prophet of Yonwood (technically a prequel), and The Diamond of Darkhold.
Information on this website is not my own and comes from: http://www.shmoop.com/city-of-ember/
Jeanne DuPrau's 2003 young adult novel The City of Ember paints a vivid picture of life in an underground city (named—you guessed it—Ember). Youngsters Lina and Doon have guessed that something is wrong because the lights are dimming, the supplies are running out, and there seems to be no escape.
Yep, things in Ember are not quite what they seem to be. Nobody in Lina and Doon's generation has ever known anything other than life in their city, ringed by absolute darkness outside its borders. Nobody knows how the generator works to keep the lights on—or why it's failing. Nobody knows why the cans of food are running out. In fact, a functioning Ember is all they have ever known. And as the electricity begins to fail, and the food stores dwindle, Lina and Doon must try to put the puzzle pieces together and figure out what's going wrong before it's too late to save their city.
Sure, it's a simple enough premise—a classic doomsday scenario. But what DuPraudoes with the doomsday scenario gives this book a unique twist. How's that? Well, the survivors of the apocalypse don't know that they're living in a post-apocalyptic era. It turns out that Ember was constructed to be the last refuge of humans should disaster ruin the world… but none of the current residents of Ember know any of this. They're literally and figuratively in the dark. Life in Ember goes on the way it always has (well, except for the terrifying disruptions of electricity and the shortages of supplies). And since the people of Ember don't know what's been lost, how can they begin to solve the mystery of their existence?
If that doesn't sound like a recipe for some critical love, then we don't know what will.The City of Ember has nabbed all sorts of accolades, including being named anAmerican Library Association Notable Book, a Kirkus 2003 Editor's Choice, Publisher's Weekly Flying Start, and a bunch of others, too. Plus they made a movie of it in 2008 starring Bill Murray. And in case you haven't gotten enough of the characters or the world, there are three books that follow: The People of Sparks, The Prophet of Yonwood (technically a prequel), and The Diamond of Darkhold.
Information on this website is not my own and comes from: http://www.shmoop.com/city-of-ember/