Young Adult Annotation

 

Author: Susan Beth Pfeffer

Title: Life as We Knew It

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

Publication Date: October, 2006

Number of Pages: 337

Geographical Setting: suburb of Pennsylvania

Time Period: Present day over a period of 11 months (May-March)

Series (If applicable): “Life As We Knew It Series” (Book #1 of 4)

Plot Summary: Told through the protagonist’s diary entries, readers come face to face with the impact of natural disaster on an intimate, micro-level. Sixteen-year-old Miranda starts out as the typical teenager, whose life centers around grades, friendships, and her relationships with family members. Her world is turned upside down when an asteroid collides with the moon, setting into motion a series of natural disasters with unparalleled consequences. Miranda documents her family’s hardships and their heroic struggle to survive amidst extreme food shortages, illnesses, and extreme weather.

Subject Headings:

Natural disasters—Fiction

Family life—Fiction

Diaries—Fiction

Science fiction

Appeal:

Pacing – This is a fast-paced read that invites readers to journey with the protagonist through her diary entries. The author successfully creates a sense of drudgery as experienced by the characters while still moving the story along at a quick pace. Even when the action is at a standstill, the story continues to move along.

Characterization – The protagonist in this novel is in many ways the prototypical teenage girl. Readers develop a connection to this likeable and identifiable narrator as she journeys from a self-absorbed teen to an emerging self-actualized young adult. Readers will root for Miranda as she struggles with adult-sized challenges. Secondary characters include her two brothers and mother, and we learn about her and witness her growth in maturity through her interactions with secondary characters.

Story Line – This story follows the typical “coming-of-age” tale ubiquitous to the YA format. Readers watch Miranda transform from an immature teen to an emerging young adult coming to an awareness that life is much more than her “internal and self-contained” (Brookover, et. al., 2013, p. 43) world. The story also contains an element of “ephemeral romance” (p.43) as Miranda finds and then lets go quickly of a love interest.

Setting/Frame (Detail) – The author creates a shroud of darkness throughout the story through descriptions of the loss of electricity, the biting cold, and the constant gray skies. Miranda notes that she can never tell what time of day it is due to the constant presence of volcanic ash. Almost daily diary entries which describe illness, malnourishment, and growing disquiet frame the story.

Language – Pfeffer utilizes an accessible writing style that appeals to teen readers. She has command of teen psychology and development and presents this through realistic dialog and internal musings of the protagonist.

Tone – The tone of this book is integral to its appeal. There is a strong element of hopelessness interspersed with moments of relief and hope. The readers is continually turning the page in an attempt to uncover some light in the darkness.

3 terms that best describe this book: bleak, compelling, emotionally-intense

Similar Authors and Works:

Fiction

 

   

Ashfall by Mike Mullin – This book centers around a teen who goes into “survival-mode” after a disastrous volcanic eruption destroys the world he once knew. Also a sci-fi novel, Ashfall shares the fast pace, bleak tone, and compelling writing style of Life As We Knew It.

The Rule of Thre3 by Eric Walters – This sci-fi young adult novel stars a teen protagonist and follows his journey of survival after a viral catastrophe shuts down the world’s technology. The tone is bleak and the pace is fast.

Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis – The teen protagonist in this novel must force herself to work with community members to sustain life. This is reminiscent of themes in Pfeffer’s novel related to low resource supplies and the need to ration. The two novels demonstrate the meaning of survival. The novels share a compelling writing style and an authentic protagonist.

Nonfiction

  

 

Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer – A bestselling survival story, this book depicts the author’s spring 1996 trek to Mt. Everest, a disastrous expedition that claimed the lives of eight climbers and explains how Krakauer survived. Readers who enjoyed the survival components of Life as We Knew It” will appreciate this highly narrative nonfiction piece.

Alive by Piers Paul Read – This disturbing account details the struggles and sufferings of a group of young Uruguayans during the ten weeks following an airplane crash in the Andes. It depicts the effects of starvation and malnutrition, a topic also present in Pfeffer’s novel. Both books treat the topic of survival. The writing style is accessible for teen readers.

Voices from Chernobyl by Svetlana Aleksievich – This book is described as an adult book for young adult readers. In it, Aleksievich recounts interviews with several victims of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Readers interested in how disasters (natural or otherwise) affect individuals, groups, and nations will take keen interest in these firsthand accounts.

References

Brookover, S., Burns, E., & Jensen, K. (2014). What’s New About New Adult? Horn Book Magazine, 90(1), 41–45.