A Reading Vocation
"I Must Read, Read, and Read. It is my Vocation." - Thomas Merton
This is where I chronicle my reading life. I also blog about writing at Lacey's Late-night Editing.
Book 45/100: Escape from Memory by Margaret Peterson Haddix
This was my first MPH book, and it was sort of a strange experience.
I think I would have devoured it had I read it when I was in the target age group. As an adult, I found the fast-pace to be a little exhausting, because I kept wanting MORE. The society depicted here, in which memory is of the utmost importance, is really fascinating, and I would have liked for the book to delve more deeply into it. A few moments felt really unbelievable to me, such as Kira's best friend hiding in her suitcase and sneaking into Crythe. But I can totally see kids eating that up. I also felt the villain was too one-dimensional, and the long string of "lucky breaks" strained believability a bit.
Still, this story raises some interesting questions and ideas about the significance of our memories, as well as the idea of the assimilation of a minority culture into the mainstream. And the hypothetical technology that drives the plot is cool, too.
