Every war has turning points and every person too.

Posted by Amanda on Nov 27th, 2013 in Books, Reviews

Title: How I Live Now
(Amazon, Goodreads)
Author: Meg Rosoff
(Amazon, Goodreads, Website)
Series: None
Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopia, Fiction
Format: eBook
Source: Amazon

Synopsis:

“Every war has turning points and every person too.”

Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy.

As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way.

A riveting and astonishing story

Review:

I heard about this through a review of the movie based upon the book. I haven’t watched the movie yet, and I’m not sure if I will. It’s supposed to be good, but I get the feeling it won’t be anything but the book itself without anything added to improve the story for the movie.

The story itself is somewhat hard to follow as there are references to a war, but not anything conclusive giving the era for this story. At first, it seemed they were referring to the second World War, but then there is mention of email and cell phones so I knew it had to be more recent and perhaps during a third World War? Once you get past that snag and disregard the time, the story is fairly fast paced and interesting.

There was a lot of mention about the cousins incest, but in the book it was pretty low-key and while they certainly hinted at the seedier side, it wasn’t overdone or gratuitous.

Overall, the story is well told and I did enjoy it. However, the end left me wondering if there had been a second book planned or a longer version that was then cut. A better end point would have been just after the call from her father, but past that the story seems to continue on without too much purpose or point.

And the anger from Edmond doesn’t make sense to me, but I can’t go into too much detail since it would give away a lot about the book.

The book has won multiple awards and nominations and it does give an accurate perspective on how war can both separate and bring together families.