Legend

Legend, Marie Lu’s debut dytopian novel, was the perfect read following the success of opening week of the Hunger Games movie. I could not put this book down – excellent storyline and realistic, powerful characters. The year is 2130; the Republic is in control while the colonies with their patriots are fighting back. When a child is ten-years-old, he or she undergoes a test called a Trial, if they score high enough (which is usually only those from wealthy families), they can work for the Republic. If they fail, they are sent to labor camps. The story is told from the two main characters’ perspectives. Day, a handsome young man who wants to save his poor family from the plague and government, has built quite a reputation for himself as a kind of Robin Hood. Failing his Trial, but escaping the labor camp, he has become the most wanted criminal by the Republic with a huge bounty on his head. June is a smart, talented girl from the “other side of the tracks”. She is a prodigy, scoring the highest score at her Trial, and leading her classmates at the Drake school for the military. When her only beloved brother, Metias, is killed, she wants nothing more than to avenge his death. Day, blamed for Metias’s death, has no idea that June is out to get him. Their two worlds collide, innocent lives are taken, and secrets are revealed. Cannot wait for book two! (Recommended for 7th grade and up)