Module 8: Fantasy and Science Fiction

“Here's the funny thing about the world coming to an end. Once it gets going, it doesn't seem to stop.” 

― Life As We Knew It, Susan Beth Pfeffer

Book Summary: 
Miranda's disbelief turns to fear in a split second when a meteor knocks the moon closer to the earth. How should her family prepare for the future when worldwide tsunamis wipe out the coasts, earthquakes rock the continents, and volcanic ash blocks out the sun? As summer turns to Arctic winter, Miranda, her two brothers, and their mother retreat to the unexpected haven of their sunroom, where they subsist on stockpiled food and limited water in the warmth of a wood-burning stove.

Told in journal entries, this is the heart-pounding story of Miranda's struggle to hold on to the most important resource of all — hope — in an increasingly desperate and unfamiliar world.

Reference: Pfeffer, S. B. (2006). Life as We Knew It. Boston, MA, HMH Books for Young Readers.

Impressions: 
An interesting take on an old topic. The end of the world has been the main plot in hundreds of books, but this particular scenario is unique in that the moon is the one hit, but earth suffers the consequences. I was interested to know that while this scenario could be a possibility in space, the results on Earth would be much different. If the moon did not completely break apart on the impact, it would have a ring of debris that would be pulled into earth's orbit and become a shower of meteorites raining down on earth at thousands of miles per hour. There would be far more widespread death, even to the extent of the complete annihilation of all humanity. 

This book has good aspects because the main character was a spoiled brat growing up. She had never gone without anything and even though her parents were divorced she had always had the security of her family, friends and was accepted well by her peers. It was interesting to see her reaction to the sudden change of her easy and calm life of abundance to the life she had to live and what she had to do just to survive. There are some wonderful lessons that she learns about what is truly important in her life, what she does with those lessons and what she discovers she can do to take care of those that she loves. Nothing brings about characters changes like adversity. 

According to Young Adult Literature by Katherine Bucher, she explains how most scholars are distinguishing Dystopia and Utopian literature from fantasy because there is an element of realism and science fiction technology. The concerns in these types of books are not too far off from the concerns of present day reality. This book and the ones that follow contain many of the elements of a good Dystopia universe book, totalitarianism, scarce resources, and anarchy. There were many moments in all four of these books that not only made me cry but made me think. One day our world will also have to face some of the very same problems as the youth had to in these books. I only hope that some of our youth have read these types of books and have learned some lessons to avoid. 

Update 11/11/15: I found this book so interesting that I discovered it was the fist book in a four part series. I obtained the other books and really couldn't put them down. I think the last book would make an excellent movie and would love to write a screenplay for this one. Anyone who is interested in this book, I recommend the whole series. A fantastic well-written book from the viewpoint of the youth. Characters are developed well and have enough depth to take them years into the future. One warning, though, there are several tear-jerking spots through all four books. You become attached to the characters and cheer them on hoping for their survival. 

Professional Review:

Pfeffer tones down the terror, but otherwise crafts a frighteningly plausible account of the local effects of a near-future worldwide catastrophe. The prospect of an asteroid hitting the Moon is just a mildly interesting news item to Pennsylvania teenager Miranda, for whom a date for the prom and the personality changes in her born-again friend, Megan, are more immediate concerns. Her priorities undergo a radical change, however, when that collision shifts the Moon into a closer orbit, causing violent earthquakes, massive tsunamis, millions of deaths, and an upsurge in volcanism. Thanks to frantic preparations by her quick-thinking mother, Miranda's family is in better shape than many as utilities and public services break down in stages, wild storms bring extremes of temperature, and outbreaks of disease turn the hospital into a dead zone. In Miranda's day-by-day journal entries, however, Pfeffer keeps nearly all of the death and explicit violence offstage, focusing instead on the stresses of spending months huddled in increasingly confined quarters, watching supplies dwindle, and wondering whether there will be any future to make the effort worthwhile. The author provides a glimmer of hope at the end, but readers will still be left stunned and thoughtful.

–John Peters, New York Public Library, Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc.

Peters, J. (N.D.) [Review of the book Life as We Knew It By Susan Beth Pfeffer] School Library Journal, Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Life-as-We-Knew-It/dp/0152061541

Library Uses: I would include it as part of a teen display for Dystopia movies and books. I could also see a couple of teen programs stemming from this book. A prepper class or writing a disaster preparedness list or a screenwriter's or writer's class can be incorporated with this series.