Article 5 by Kristen Simmons
Release Date: January 31, 2012
Publisher: Tor Teen
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 368
Summary: New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned.
The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes.
There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back.
Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren’t always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it’s hard for her to forget that people weren’t always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It’s hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different.
Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow.
That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings…the only boy Ember has ever loved.
My Thoughts: Okay, so another book I absolutely thought was wonderful. Oh man, Article 5 was an amazing debut.
We are introduced to Ember who lives with her mother. She never got to know her father, and her mother is considered unmarried and had a child out of wedlock and is in violation of the Moral Statutes. So, the soldiers come and take her and her mother away. Her mother gets sent to a place to await trial and Ember gets sent to a girls rehabilitation center. Of course, there is a boy thrown into the story too. Chase. Chase used to live next door to Ember before he joined the War and became a soldier. She really cared for that boy.
As Ember is thrown into the rehabilitation center, she never loses her spirit. She knows she must find her mother and get them to a safe place. She must not let the soldiers run her whole entire life. She has to keep hope and wish things get better.
Ember remembers what the world used to be like, where she could go outside and walk around and not have to worry about things. She could buy clothes, and eat food, and not have to worry about people trying to steal it right off her back.
The relationship between Ember and Chase was romantic. We see flashbacks of how things used to be between them. I could tell that even though Chase had to act all tough at first, he was still a good guy and really cared deeply about Ember. I don’t think his feelings ever really changed for her.
I hated the soldiers. Almost every soldier is mean, annoying, and corrupt.
I’m sure different people will have different perceptions of this novel. There are a lot of dystopians coming out so it’s difficult to find the best ones out there and not compare them. Article 5, in my opinion was pretty darn great. But, it also focuses a lot on the romance part so if your not into that, you may not like this one as much. There were a lot of different things happening, but for me, the romance was the most sweetest part.
Ember is on the run most of the novel. She’s trying to get to the carrier and find her mother. Ember and Chase do make a good team.
I couldn’t believe the twists in this book. I should have seen a few of them coming, but I didn't. Things were such a shock for me. I felt for the characters. I wanted good things for Ember. She wedged her way into my heart, and I wanted to see her happy all the way from the very first page.
Overall: I really loved this one. I loved all the characters. I loved the sequence of events. I loved the relationship between Chase and Ember. Granted, neither of them are perfect but they were a perfect team and had each other’s backs. I loved the setting. I loved how Simmons built up this really horrible detailed world and how I felt like I got the chance to live in it for a few hours. Definitely opened my eyes up to how it could be. For Ember and Chase, cars were rare, clothes were basically rags, and food was hard to come by.
Cover: The cover is cool! It’s a lot of lighter colors but I like the way the girl and guy are on the cliff looking out over the city.
Release Date: January 31, 2012
Publisher: Tor Teen
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 368
Summary: New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned.
The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes.
There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back.
Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren’t always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it’s hard for her to forget that people weren’t always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It’s hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different.
Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow.
That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings…the only boy Ember has ever loved.
My Thoughts: Okay, so another book I absolutely thought was wonderful. Oh man, Article 5 was an amazing debut.
We are introduced to Ember who lives with her mother. She never got to know her father, and her mother is considered unmarried and had a child out of wedlock and is in violation of the Moral Statutes. So, the soldiers come and take her and her mother away. Her mother gets sent to a place to await trial and Ember gets sent to a girls rehabilitation center. Of course, there is a boy thrown into the story too. Chase. Chase used to live next door to Ember before he joined the War and became a soldier. She really cared for that boy.
As Ember is thrown into the rehabilitation center, she never loses her spirit. She knows she must find her mother and get them to a safe place. She must not let the soldiers run her whole entire life. She has to keep hope and wish things get better.
Ember remembers what the world used to be like, where she could go outside and walk around and not have to worry about things. She could buy clothes, and eat food, and not have to worry about people trying to steal it right off her back.
The relationship between Ember and Chase was romantic. We see flashbacks of how things used to be between them. I could tell that even though Chase had to act all tough at first, he was still a good guy and really cared deeply about Ember. I don’t think his feelings ever really changed for her.
I hated the soldiers. Almost every soldier is mean, annoying, and corrupt.
I’m sure different people will have different perceptions of this novel. There are a lot of dystopians coming out so it’s difficult to find the best ones out there and not compare them. Article 5, in my opinion was pretty darn great. But, it also focuses a lot on the romance part so if your not into that, you may not like this one as much. There were a lot of different things happening, but for me, the romance was the most sweetest part.
Ember is on the run most of the novel. She’s trying to get to the carrier and find her mother. Ember and Chase do make a good team.
I couldn’t believe the twists in this book. I should have seen a few of them coming, but I didn't. Things were such a shock for me. I felt for the characters. I wanted good things for Ember. She wedged her way into my heart, and I wanted to see her happy all the way from the very first page.
Overall: I really loved this one. I loved all the characters. I loved the sequence of events. I loved the relationship between Chase and Ember. Granted, neither of them are perfect but they were a perfect team and had each other’s backs. I loved the setting. I loved how Simmons built up this really horrible detailed world and how I felt like I got the chance to live in it for a few hours. Definitely opened my eyes up to how it could be. For Ember and Chase, cars were rare, clothes were basically rags, and food was hard to come by.
Cover: The cover is cool! It’s a lot of lighter colors but I like the way the girl and guy are on the cliff looking out over the city.
What I’d Give It:
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