We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . .
Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.
Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .
There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.
When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.
Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.
Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .
There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.
When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.
Le Interviewer: On a scale of one to ten, with one being ridiculous and boring and ten being simply MIND-
BLOWING, what would you give to Pure?
Le Me: TEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *screams and dances as streamers and confetti fall from the sky and fireworks light up the world*
Essentially, that little thing sums it up. This book was AH-mazing!
When I first heard of Pure, it was being compared to Hunger Games. The review said that Pure made Hunger Games look tame, that it was totally more hard core and horrifying, pretty much saying that it was the far superior dystopia.
“How dare they!” you say? “Hunger Games BUILT ALL EXPECTATIONS for young adult dystopia!” you say?
That is true. However, Pure redefines dystopia for teenage readers, putting the concept into a whole new, far more terrifying context. You could call that context “Post-Apocalyptic” or, in more specific terms, “After the Nuclear Bomb”.
Pure uses descriptive writing really well, and Julianna Baggott’s Dust creatures, mutants and scenery will make you feel absolutely, amazingly SICK TO YOUR STOMACH. Plus, she actually pulled off split perspective, which I ALWAYS seem to hate. Pressia was interesting. Partridge was interesting. El Capitan was interesting. Lyda was interesting. Anyone who narrated the story was interesting! And each of them was different! Usually with split perspective, you have one character who you want to listen to throughout the whole book. You won’t be thinking about that whilst reading Pure.
This is a book that will move you, make you scared and horrified and happy and sad and angry. It might make you vomit, which does not mean anything bad, just that it was really good at making you disgusted. But not because of the bad writing (*vampires of sparkly doom*). Because of the story, and intentionally.
Also, look at the picture of the cover. Look at it! Can you not see how amazing this story will be from the fact that the cover is completely BLACK? Isn’t that so cool!?
I recommend to any teenager and older, though maybe not at bedtime as it is quite disturbing sometimes. Read and enjoy! Especially if you want to read a serious book with minimal romance and lots of mutants and revolutions and governments whose arses need kicking!
I rate it:
5/5!!!!!!!!!
