Breathe by Sarah Crossan

Breathe by Sarah Crossan

Release Date: October 2, 2012

Publisher: Greenwillow

Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 384

Summary: The world has no air. If you want to survive, you pay to breathe. But what if you can't? And what if you think everything could be different? Three teens will leave everything they know behind in Sarah Crossan's gripping and original dystopian teen novel of danger, longing, and glimmering hope that will appeal to fans of Patrick Ness and Veronica Roth.

Ever since the Switch, when the oxygen levels plummeted and most of humanity died, the survivors have been protected in glass domes full of manufactured air. Protected . . . or trapped? Or controlled? Alina's a revolutionary who believes we can save the environment. Quinn's a Premium who's never had to worry about having enough air. His best friend, Bea, is an Auxiliary who's never worried about anything but having enough air. When the three cross paths, they will change everything. Sarah Crossan's thrilling and provocative novel is about passion, about yearning for something better, and about breaking free for the very first time.

My Thoughts: This one was interesting.

Breathe focuses on three points of view, and switches between the three. This was actually very easy to follow and I always knew when it switched.

We are introduced to Bea, Quinn, and Alina. Each have their own back story and in one way or another they are are connected to each other. They each have their own secrets, fears, and way of doing things.

Air costs money and if you don’t have very much money, than you never really have enough air.

Bea and Quinn are going away together for a few days. They are going to go relax and enjoy themselves. But when they run into Alina at the border, things change fast and escalate. They are thrown into her situation and choose to travel behind her. She has gotten herself in some trouble and has to get out fast.

The three of them embark on quite the journey and they learn things about air that seem crazy. How can this happen?

I liked Breathe and at times I really enjoyed it. I liked the characters and I’m anxious to find out what happens next. But this one, just wasn't my absolute favorite. I did get through it really fast so that must mean something.  I thought it had an intriguing premise but it probably doesn’t fall into my neatest dystopians.

Overall: I enjoyed it but I didn’t love it. I think it falls more into a 3.5 cupcake rating but I’m going to give it a 4 because I never felt like I had to push through it. I got it read pretty quickly. Out of all the characters, I liked Bea the most. I’ll be looking forward to reading the next in the series.

Cover: Like it. I like the colors!

What I’d Give It: