This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer

In this final installation in the Last Survivor's Trilogy, Miranda and the rest of the Evans family begin to undergo some major changes yet again. When Miranda's father and step-mother arrive on the scene with their baby and a few strangers, the Evans family must learn to survive in a whole new set of circumstances, especially when reality finally seeps in that the world will never be the same again. One of the strangers is Alex Morales and as he and Miranda slowly share their stories, Miranda must make a decision that will change the course of her life forever.

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Like the rest of the "moon trilogy", This World We Live In was a nail-biter. What sets this book apart from the rest of the trilogy however is the emotional honesty we see from all of the characters. There comes a time in this novel where everybody finally realizes that things aren't going to go back to "normal" and that they must make choices that will permanently adjust their way of life. In the previous novels, we witnessed a shocking lunar event; the terrifying story of Alex and his family; and now, as Miranda and Alex's stories are intertwined, we begin to see how the past events have changed them. Miranda is no longer innocent towards her tragic environment and Alex has become extremely reserved and protective because of his devastating past experiences.

The Dead And The Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer

Susan Beth Pfeffer’s Life as We Knew It enthralled and devastated readers with its brutal but hopeful look at an apocalyptic event--an asteroid hitting the moon, setting off a tailspin of horrific climate changes. Now this harrowing companion novel examines the same events as they unfold in New York City, revealed through the eyes of seventeen-year-old Puerto Rican Alex Morales. When Alex's parents disappear in the aftermath of tidal waves, he must care for his two younger sisters, even as Manhattan becomes a deadly wasteland, and food and aid dwindle. With haunting themes of family, faith, personal change, and courage, this powerful novel explores how a young man takes on unimaginable responsibilities.

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The second book in the Last Survivors Trilogy, The Dead & The Gone follow the lives of the Morales family in New York City. It wasn't as good as the first book–in my opinion–but maybe I just wanted to find out what happened to Miranda and her family rather than take a look at a whole new cast of characters. This book was definitely more graphic and sad than Life as We Knew It. The agony and fear of being left alone in terrible circumstances tears at your mind the entire book; as characters disappear and drop like flies, you begin to realize all over again the reality of what people do to survive–nomatter how gruesome. I think what's so intriguing and special about this series is that it's almost real.

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld (by Guest Reviewer)

It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship, and the most masterful beast in the British fleet.
Aleksandar Ferdinand, prince of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, is on the run. His own people have turned on him. His title is worthless. All he has is a battle-torn Stormwalker and a loyal crew of men.
Deryn Sharp is a commoner, a girl disguised as a boy in the British Air Service. She's a brilliant airman. But her secret is in constant danger of being discovered.
With the Great War brewing, Alek's and Deryn's paths cross in the most unexpected way...taking them both aboard the Leviathan on a fantastical, around-the-world adventure. One that will change both their lives forever.

I was at first a little hesitant to pick this book up since I’m normally not that into fictional books about the World Wars but once I started reading it, I couldn’t stop. The book was well paced and the characters were enthralling. Since I like animals, I also found the creatures in the book very interesting and the machines were cool too.

I quickly got attached to Aleksandar because of his friendly personality and Deryn was a fiery female character who can take care of herself.

Normally, when there is a lot of illustrations in a book, it seems to make the book seem like it is for younger children but the illustrations in this book did not seem that way at all. They were very well done and added to the story by helping me see what the creatures and machines looked like when long descriptions would have bogged down the story.

The thing that bothered me most in this book was that the author referred to evolution quite a bit. Still, I am eagerly awaiting the second book.

|Pages: 448|Year Published: October 6, 2009 |Publisher: Simon Pulse|
|Genre: Science fiction, steampunk, alternate history |
|Age Group: YA, ages 12+|Buy or Borrow? Both|
|Content: None|

|Enjoyed It: 4/5|Content Rating: 5/5|Overall|

Review by Jessi

Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer

When Miranda first hears the warnings that a meteor is headed on a collision path with the moon, they just sound like an excuse for extra homework assignments. But her disbelief turns to fear in a split second as the entire world witnesses a lunar impact that knocks the moon closer in orbit, catastrophically altering the earth's climate. Everything else in Miranda's life fades away as supermarkets run out of food, gas goes up to more than ten dollars a gallon, and school is closed indefinitely. But what Miranda and her family don't realize is that the worst is yet to come.

I haven't   read much science fiction so when I picked up Life as We Knew It, I held my breath. Maybe it was because I have never been the type of person who likes apocalyptic/alien movies or maybe it was because I just never really read sci-fi before? Oh, sure I've watched Star Wars, Star Trek (09), and even a TV series called Jericho (which the media took off the air), but I guess I decided to give sci-fi a second chance, this time in literature instead of on the big screen.

Life as We Knew It was amazing. Not only because it takes the reader along for a ride of disaster, adventure, and drama, but it also gives the reader a glimpse of what might happen if something similar took place. To me, this book was more than just "entertainment", it was an epic story of family and survival. As Miranda writes down her thoughts and the devastating events, you realize how much you take for granted: running water, heat, washer and dryer, electric/gas stove, shower, even food.
The book is told in diary entries , which gives it a more personal or "eyewitness" feel. If you grew up reading Dear America books like I did, then you will be really comfortable with this style. I would have liked the scene where the moon is pushed closer to earth to have been a little more dramatic because, gosh that would have been a great scene to write about, but I was quite happy with the rest of the novel.
I can't tell you much more about Miranda's first winter of the Last Survivors Triology, but I can tell you that Life as We Knew It is a classic science fiction novel you won't want to pass up. I am looking forward to reading its sequel The Dead and the Gone, and the final installation, This World We Live In which will be released this April. I highly recommend picking up a copy at your library/bookstore today!

|Pages: 337|Year Published: 2006|Publisher: Harcourt|
|Genre: Science Fiction|Age Group: YA, ages 12+|
|Content: A few kisses, mild language, & dramatic elements|
|Buy or Borrow?| Both (NEW!)|Series?| Yes, Book 1|
|Enjoyed It: 5/5|Content Rating: 4/5|Cover: 5/5|
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How to Ditch Your Fairy by Justine Larbalestier

From the book jacket:

Welcome to New Avalon, where everyone has a personal fairy. Though invisible to the naked eye, a personal fairy, like a specialized good luck charm, is vital to success. And in the case of the students at New Avalon Sports High, it might just determine whether you make the team, pass a class, or find that perfect outfit. But for 14-year-old Charlie, having a Parking Fairy is worse than having nothing at all—especially when the school bully carts her around like his own personal parking pass. Enter: The Plan. At first, teaming up with arch-enemy Fiorenza (who has an All-The-Boys-Like-You Fairy) seems like a great idea. But when Charlie unexpectedly gets her heart’s desire, it isn’t at all what she thought it would be like, and she’ll have resort to extraordinary measures to ditch her fairy. The question is: will Charlie herself survive the fairy ditching experiment? From the author of the acclaimed Magic or Madness trilogy, this is a delightful story of fairies, friendships, and figuring out how to make your own magic.  

This book was bizarre.... in an fun/silly sort of way. In the opening chapter, the main character Charlie (short for Charlotte) is with her friend talking about spoffs. Okay what the heck are spoffs? If I would have looked in the back of the book for the trusty little definition guide, I would have stopped wondering what spoffs were [boobs] and move on to another odd word. Just remember, if you do read this book, check in the back for the guide or it will drive you crazy wondering what all those New Avalon slang words mean.

The setting in the story took some getting use to, especially because it didn't explain much and when it did, you were worried about some other quirky thing. In New Avalon (which is like NYC) instead of saying you have a natural gift or knack for something, you would say you have a fairy for that. It may sound a bit weird, but it's pretty genius symbolism if you ask me.

Even though the story-line became predictable, I still kept turning those pages. Maybe it was the characters (who were fairly well developed for a such a light book), maybe it was the quirkyness, or maybe it was just because I was dying to see if Charlie would truly loose that parking fairy; and if so, what kind of fairy would she get? Beyond all the fantasy/sci-fi stuff of New Avalon, trying to "starve" her fairy away, and dodging the parking fairy fanatic Danders Anders, Charlie learns a valuable lesson in accepting others.

Overall I still felt that I didn't enjoy this book as much as I thought I would; but I still recommend. Want something light and whacky? Read How to Ditch Your Fairy! 

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If I had a fairy, it would be a "Great Taste in Colors" fairy and a "Good Book" fairy.

What kind of fairy [special quirky ability] do you have? (Some people have more than one "fairy")

Pages: 320   Year Published: 2008   Fiction: Fantasy/Sci-fi

Level: YA, ages 13+    This Book is For: Teen girls

Should I Waist My Eyes on This? Yes    Buy or Borrow: Borrow

        Rating & Reviewer Enjoyment: