The Other Side Of The Island

Title: The Other Side Of The Island
Author: Allegra Goodman
Genre: YA Fiction
Page Count: 272
Why I read it: I loved how the synopsis sounded
and it was recommended by a friend.
Grade: B-
Publication date: September 4th, 2008

Synopsis:
Honor and her parents have been reassigned to live on Island 365 in the Tranquil Sea. Life is peaceful there—the color of the sky is regulated by Earth Mother, a corporation that controls New Weather, and it almost never rains. Everyone fits into their rightful and predictable place. . . .Except Honor. She doesn’t fit in, but then she meets Helix, a boy with a big heart and a keen sense for the world around them. Slowly, Honor and Helix begin to uncover a terrible truth about life on the Island: Sooner or later, those who are unpredictable disappear . . . and they don’t ever come back


My Review:

The author had an amazing writing style that helped me jump right into the story. The main character Honor is smart and strong and easy to love. The supporting caricatures were also strong and Allegra Goodman made me care about all of them. One of the things that drew me to this book was it's likeness to The Giver by Lois Lawry, but in the end it was one of the main things that made me not like the book as much as I hoped. So many points in the story were only half explained, like the drug that turned people into orderlies. I felt like she would talk about things over and over without really explaining it so I felt like I only half knew what she was talking about some of the time. Even so I was never bored and I wanted to keep reading. Most of the book was a positive, the biggest negative to the book was the non ending. I like books with a beginning a middle and an end. The end is very important especially if the book is a stand alone and not in a series. I don't like that the book was just over almost like the author dropped off of the face of the planet before she could end an otherwise great story. She explained on the next page that her book had no ending on purpose and she did it to encourage discussion. That would be okay if it was a book written for a book class or something but otherwise I feel just end the story. I was so frustrated because I really grew to love Honor and now I will never know for sure what happens to her. I still am glad I read this book, it is one I will think about for a long time. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes YA Fiction, just expect a cliffhanger ending similar to The Giver.

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