Summary:
Maddie has been living in LA away from her father, but still under everyone's watchful eye. Claire and Maddie get all dressed up to go to a dance club, only to have their desires dashed to be going to a virtual club. This resembles a movie theater with everyone staring at a screen and interacting through digital devices. It's scary to see how little person to person contact people have. Maddie stirs things up, which of course, she gets into trouble for. Only this time, she's in deeper than normal. Maddie is sent to a detention center. While in the detention center, she's led to a room filled with digital screens. She's not allowed to talk to anyone and doesn't have any luxuries. She goes for counseling and is introduced to The Cure, a secretive treatment that attacks her mind and quells her desire to rebel. It is terrifying and torturous. The only thing that is keeping her fighting is her love for Justin. Is it enough?
My thoughts:
My favorite book is 1984. It led me to my favorite dystopian genre. I'm 90% more likely to pick up a book that has a dystopian feel to it than anything else. I was originally drawn to Awaken because of this dystopian digital storyline. I enjoyed it, but not even close to as much as I LOVED this book. Unusual for a sequel, I feel like the writing and character development within Middle Ground is superb. I really get to know Maddie. The tortures that she goes through are reminiscent of 1984 as they try to reprogram individuals to fit back into society. Love becomes the only thing to give hope to all of the characters within the book. It's really a great message, complete with flaws and pitfalls. Most dystopians focus on just one hero, but Middle Ground gives you a whole slew of supporting characters that are absolutely necessary. I rarely ever reread novels, but I'm thinking about going through this again. If it wasn't a sequel, I would consider teaching this novel for how to develop characters without just describing every detail. You learn about these characters through their memories (anecdotes) and through other characters. It's very important for other writers to know that you can do character development without telling me everything about the character; however Kacvinsky did have the benefit of already introducing the characters in book one, so the prior knowledge does help in Middle Ground. That's the only thing stopping me from ordering 35 copies and teaching this in my classroom.
Dear Ms. Kacvinsky,
I loved it! Please write me another one. :-)
Thank you!
Maddie has been living in LA away from her father, but still under everyone's watchful eye. Claire and Maddie get all dressed up to go to a dance club, only to have their desires dashed to be going to a virtual club. This resembles a movie theater with everyone staring at a screen and interacting through digital devices. It's scary to see how little person to person contact people have. Maddie stirs things up, which of course, she gets into trouble for. Only this time, she's in deeper than normal. Maddie is sent to a detention center. While in the detention center, she's led to a room filled with digital screens. She's not allowed to talk to anyone and doesn't have any luxuries. She goes for counseling and is introduced to The Cure, a secretive treatment that attacks her mind and quells her desire to rebel. It is terrifying and torturous. The only thing that is keeping her fighting is her love for Justin. Is it enough?
My thoughts:
My favorite book is 1984. It led me to my favorite dystopian genre. I'm 90% more likely to pick up a book that has a dystopian feel to it than anything else. I was originally drawn to Awaken because of this dystopian digital storyline. I enjoyed it, but not even close to as much as I LOVED this book. Unusual for a sequel, I feel like the writing and character development within Middle Ground is superb. I really get to know Maddie. The tortures that she goes through are reminiscent of 1984 as they try to reprogram individuals to fit back into society. Love becomes the only thing to give hope to all of the characters within the book. It's really a great message, complete with flaws and pitfalls. Most dystopians focus on just one hero, but Middle Ground gives you a whole slew of supporting characters that are absolutely necessary. I rarely ever reread novels, but I'm thinking about going through this again. If it wasn't a sequel, I would consider teaching this novel for how to develop characters without just describing every detail. You learn about these characters through their memories (anecdotes) and through other characters. It's very important for other writers to know that you can do character development without telling me everything about the character; however Kacvinsky did have the benefit of already introducing the characters in book one, so the prior knowledge does help in Middle Ground. That's the only thing stopping me from ordering 35 copies and teaching this in my classroom.
Dear Ms. Kacvinsky,
I loved it! Please write me another one. :-)
Thank you!
In this anticipated sequel to Awaken, Middle Ground picks up with Maddie living with her brother in Los Angeles. The year is 2060. She's supposed to be in a detention facility, but her father has used his powers to do some fancy paperwork to make it look like she is. While Maddie is happy in LA, she misses her boyfriend Justin, who is working at intercepting other kids on their way to the detention facilities and inviting them to join their cause. It's their biggest goal to get rid of DS, digital school, a program that Maddie's father created.
They believe that kids should have the choice of online school or public school. They should be able to go out and meet friends face to face and get sun on their faces without everything being digitalized. But DS keeps kids safe and controlled, and those that run it will do whatever it takes to make sure it runs properly.
When Maddie goes to a virtual club with her brother and some friends, she can't help herself but try and show the kids the way things could be. All it does is get her into trouble and before long, someone is knocking at her door and she's on the way to the detention center for rehabilitation. This time, Justin and her friends can't get her out. What happens behind the locked doors in the center is horrific - they want the kids to be controlled and realize that it's not safe outside and they will do whatever it takes to get that through their heads. Maddie tries to endure but she can't do it alone.
Middle Grade is a great second installment in this series! Maddie and Justin's relationship is still moving along, but it has it's struggles. Especially since her father created DS and he leads the group that wants to demolish it. In a world where we all rely on so much technology, Kacvinsky's series puts things a bit in perspective. There has to be balance, and in her world, there isn't. I really empathized with Maddie and her plight, she made some good and bad choices. I also enjoyed getting to know Justin more in this installment. The book ends satisfactory, no horrid cliffhanger, but it does allude to another book in the series. I can't wait!
They believe that kids should have the choice of online school or public school. They should be able to go out and meet friends face to face and get sun on their faces without everything being digitalized. But DS keeps kids safe and controlled, and those that run it will do whatever it takes to make sure it runs properly.
When Maddie goes to a virtual club with her brother and some friends, she can't help herself but try and show the kids the way things could be. All it does is get her into trouble and before long, someone is knocking at her door and she's on the way to the detention center for rehabilitation. This time, Justin and her friends can't get her out. What happens behind the locked doors in the center is horrific - they want the kids to be controlled and realize that it's not safe outside and they will do whatever it takes to get that through their heads. Maddie tries to endure but she can't do it alone.
Middle Grade is a great second installment in this series! Maddie and Justin's relationship is still moving along, but it has it's struggles. Especially since her father created DS and he leads the group that wants to demolish it. In a world where we all rely on so much technology, Kacvinsky's series puts things a bit in perspective. There has to be balance, and in her world, there isn't. I really empathized with Maddie and her plight, she made some good and bad choices. I also enjoyed getting to know Justin more in this installment. The book ends satisfactory, no horrid cliffhanger, but it does allude to another book in the series. I can't wait!
