2024 the best young adult books review

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(as of Nov 24, 2024 23:52:09 UTC - Details)

A Time Best YA Book of All Time (2021)

Two teens must learn the “art of killing” in this Printz Honor–winning book, the first in a chilling new series from Neal Shusterman, author of the New York Times bestselling Unwind dystology.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.

Scythe is the first novel of a thrilling new series by National Book Award–winning author Neal Shusterman in which Citra and Rowan learn that a perfect world comes only with a heavy price.

From the Publisher

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (November 28, 2017)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 144247243X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1442472433
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 12 years and up
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 830L
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 7 - 9
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1.1 x 8.25 inches
Reviewer: Book Series Recaps and Reviews
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: The perfect balance between entertaining me and making me think
Review: No spoilers in this rapid review of Scythe. I loved it and give it 4.5 stars. I read so much fantasy that any book set in modern times feels like a breath of fresh air, and Scythe is no exception. It blends genres, but I’d say the predominant one is dystopian. The premise is unique, timely, and thought-provoking.Scythe is set in a world where humanity has conquered every threat. All knowledge has been collected and stored in a database called the cloud (sound familiar?). 😉 The cloud—aka the Thunderhead—has used this cumulative knowledge to conquer all disease and prevent all accidents before they happen. Nanites in each person’s bloodstream control human emotions and can be triggered on a moment’s notice to curb spikes in anger.Since crimes of passion, disease, and accidents are absent and since aging can be reversed as often as a person likes, the world population burgeons in a very short time. Something must be done to curb this growth, and scythes are the eventual answer. Scythes are the only people not monitored by the Thunderhead and can thus glean excessive humans as they see fit (as long as they stay within their quotas, of course). Most scythes abhor the task and do it with a great weight on their shoulders and with great sympathy for the families left behind. But there are rogue scythes who enjoy what they do and try to make their gleanings as glamorous as possible.As the population continues to grow, more scythes are necessary. We meet our main characters when the honorable Scythe Faraday (who reminded me a bit of Dumbledore at times) takes on two new apprentices, Citra and Rowan. We see why Faraday’s drawn to them and then are immersed in the secret training and society of the scythes. Each chapter is prefaced with a journal entry penned by a scythe, so we get to be in the heads of a variety of characters in addition to our two mains.Shusterman struck the perfect balance between keeping me entertained and making me think, which is the formula for great dystopian, right? And what a journey he took me on with this tale! He presented quite a moral dilemma: How does a person maintain a sense of right and wrong when he or she truly lives above the law? And how do the scythes handle what they’re called to do each day without breaking?I enjoyed seeing both the inner turmoil and the rapid growth in Citra and Rowan as they go through their training. Their personalities are different, and they often respond differently to the same situation. Yet a bond slowly forms between the two of them. This bond is tested as they continue on the perilous journey to become a scythe. And all the while, they both question if this is something they even wanted in the first place.This story resonated with me for a number of reasons. As technology progresses by leaps and bounds every year and mankind attempts to conquer disease, hunger, and the other problems of the world, I found it fairly easy to envision a society like Citra and Rowan’s. It was interesting to see that even if crime appears to be conquered, Shusterman believes there will always be those who bend or break the law. He displays how human nature ultimately shines through. And I couldn’t help thinking of Christian ideals as I read. Can humans ever truly conquer evil? Or disease? And as soon as one problem is seemingly conquered, won’t others creep up? Shusterman suggests this is the case, and I tend to agree with him on this point. It seems perfection isn’t within human grasp without help from a higher power.Scythe was full of characters who are glaringly real. I loved Citra and Rowan equally. I enjoyed seeing the same new concepts through both of their eyes. And I liked their banter. So far my review has focused on the heaviness of the book, but there’s humor, too, and it often appeared in conversations between these two. Shusterman also presented some sardonic commentary on current American society and its frivolity (which made me alternately smile and cringe) as he built his dystopian take on the nation of MidMerica.What else can I say? I loved Scythe and definitely recommend it. It’s an exciting ride from beginning to end, with plenty of twists and turns along the way. I was truly surprised multiple times, and I loved every minute of it. The climax was exciting, providing the drama and answers I craved plus setting up Thunderhead, which is sure to be a great sequel.Search for 'Book Series Recaps' to read all of our reviews as well as our full book recaps!

Reviewer: Abigail Burt-Gracik
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Beautiful
Review: This book is hands down one of the best books I have ever read. The plot is extremely detailed, the characters have perfect personalities, and the ending is both dramatic and touching. 100% recommend!

Reviewer: Ara Valdez
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Good, but not as awesome as I thought it would be.
Review: Thanks to an incredibly long queue at the bank, I managed to finish the last quarter of Neal Shusterman’s Scythe (Arc of a Scythe, #1). Grim reaper stories always fascinate me, and on paper, Scythe and I seems like a match made in…well…heaven. On its own, however, Scythe wasn’t nearly as awesome as I anticipated. But as far as the premise and—ahem!—execution are concerned, Scythe did bring something new and unexpected to the table.Shusterman’s take on a world that has conquered death has many intriguing elements—the cloud that evolved into the Thunderhead, the vanities and diversions of immortal people, and the odd jobs that only the undying will take on (Moving target for killcraft practice, anyone?). But there are also things about this world that seem silly (e.g., Scythes as the solution to overpopulation) or make little sense to me (e.g., most political machinations within the Scythedom). Most of these things you can shrug off, but there are a few that negatively impact the story’s pacing and predictability. The one “big twist” that the book has been building up to was a little too obvious, generating frustration instead of suspense. Fortunately, Scythe tied up a lot of loose ends by the last chapter, ending Citra’s and Rowan’s stories on a relatively satisfying note.The array of characters offered by Scythe were, regrettably, not memorable. The villains were almost ridiculously cartoonish, and the protagonists were so unremarkable that relating to any of them proved to be a feat. There’s Citra, a typical overachiever who finds something that she didn’t want to succeed in for the first time in her life. Then there’s Rowan, a self-described “lettuce kid”—a child sandwiched in the middle of a large family—whose selfless act suddenly thrusts him into the limelight…and into an unwanted apprenticeship with a scythe. By the story’s conclusion, I could only recall these two as kind of a charmless Hermione Granger and a less likable Peeta Mellark.As far as the writing goes, the prose in Scythe is generally underwhelming. It’s enough to convey mood, enough to narrate events clearly, but there isn’t a single moment that I’d pinpoint as amazing or breathtaking. The scythes’ journal excerpts are enjoyable to read though, providing excellent food for thought that the narrative fails to impart.I rate Scythe 4 out of 5 stars. While the concept was good, the story wasn’t as fascinating, the characters weren’t as endearing, and the writing wasn’t as engaging as I thought it would be. It’s not a book that I’d read again, nor is it something that I’d follow until the end. Regardless, I think readers of young adult/dystopian fiction will find some entertainment in this work.

Reviewer: Joan Nord
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: The book draws you in immediately when a scythe, whose job it is to glean-aka cull- humans, shows up at teenage protagonist Citra’s door for dinner. The twist comes further into the story than usual, and puts dual protagonists Citra and Rowen in a direction neither were expecting. There’s lots of set up, but the worldbuilding makes it interesting. Great plot. Even genre bending. Pretty much unputdownable.

Reviewer: Cliente de Amazon
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Desde que leí la reseña supe que tenía que leer este libro. Ahora que lo he empezado me he dado cuenta que fue una excelente elección, la historia te atrapa, y te deja reflexionando.

Reviewer: Bhawana Bisen
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: The book makes a good start with a detailed introduction to the supposed "utopia" it is meant to portray. I found the portion of the book a little boring where one is reading through the development of the characters in the story; although it's not very uncommon as one tends to tilt towards the "big picture" elements in a dystopian fiction. The book picks up well as soon as it familiarizes the reader with the nature of its characters, and taking them through some jaw-dropping plot twists, the book finishes itself quite well. It doesn't compel one to pick up part 2 right away, but it surely does make one inquisitive enough to do that someday.P.S.: I did pick up Thunderhead the very next day I finshed reading The Scythe, and I must say, it's such a high jump from The Scythe! Truely amazing!

Reviewer: Amazon Customer
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Livraison rapide et conforme. Premier livre d'une saga qui ravit notamment les adolescents...et les plus grands.

Reviewer: leo
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: this book honestly was super interesting to read, and i actually ended up getting the whole trilogy at once! a friend of mine told me that it was good, so i listened to her and she was absolutely right! now im on the second book, and even though it has it's length to it (around 515 pages, which is fairly long for what im used to), im definitely super excited to read it!