Imagine a perfect world. A world without flaws. A world without disease or accidental death. At least it seems to be perfect…. But is it? Now imagine you are in this perfect world where death and life remain at an even balance, yet some people are chosen specifically to be the harbingers of death and destroyers of life. People who defy death itself and whose sole purpose is to bring death upon others all for the ‘good of humanity.’ Does that sound very fair? What if you are allowed to join them? Would you believe their existence is fair if you were one of them?
Official Synopsis: A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life–and they are commanded to do so, to keep the size of the population under control.
Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe–a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Fantasy, Young Adult
Important Characters:- Citra and Rowan
My review: 5/5: I first read this book in 6th grade and absolutely loved it! This book puts into perspective what you would do to survive and more specifically what society would do to survive into the future. I find the idea of an ideal society represented in this book as interesting and a very intriguing idea of just how far one’s morality could go. I totally recommend this book for any fans of dystopian series’ such as The Hunger Games!
Mrs. Craycraft’s (our librarian) Goodreads Review: 5/5
“Can I give this a higher rating? This book officially made me squee with glee!
I am so happy to have a new series from Shusterman and let me tell you that this book did not disappoint! So the world has now become so advanced that we have even overcome death. But to control population we must have Scythes which “glean” people in a random selection. Death will still come but you are not in danger from accidents, murder, etc. Also, if you refuse to be gleaned or make it difficult, your entire family will pay the price because they will be gleaned as well. Talk about a motivation to go along with it!
The two characters Citra and Rowan are both selected to be apprentice Scythes which is something that is just not done in this world. But Scythe Faraday has decided to undertake the task and only one of the two of them will be selected, the other must go back to their old life. But of course, it will not end there. This may be much more dangerous to the ‘winner’ than they ever imagined.
These characters are ones that you can not help but love, even when they appear to be bad, they still have very valid reasons for what they do. The world is one that you can not help but be absorbed in and by the time you are done, you actually believe this is something we could see in the future. By the end, I felt as though I was trying to figure out possible ways to change the way this world functions and resolve the issues that arise during Citra and Rowan’s apprenticeship.
If you were a fan of Unwind you will love this book! If you were not a fan…read this book anyway! So many social and emotional issues are covered in this that I could very well see it used in classrooms of multiple types as well from English to Social Studies and even Psychology/Sociology.
A must, must, must read!!!!!
Author Reviews:
“In a world where humanity has conquered death and a fraternity called Scythes are the only ones allowed to kill people to curb overpopulation, Citra Terranova and Rowan Damisch must cope with their newfound and terrible responsibilities as apprentices in killing. A brilliant and gripping sci-fi thriller that acutely explores the consequences of worldwide immortality and asks readers to think critically about the nature of morality.” -School Library Journal
“Shusterman … .writes prose with the sort of spring in its step that says: “Stand back. I know what I’m doing” …Scythe is full of sly plot twists and absorbing set pieces. The novel is the first in a planned series, but one emerging theme has a nice sting to it: Maybe we should give computers the keys to what’s left of the kingdom because human beings can’t be trusted”-The New York Times Book Review-Jeff Giles
About the Author: Neal Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty award-winning books for children, teens, and adults, including the Unwind dystology, the Skinjacker trilogy, Downsiders, and Challenger Deep, which won the National Book Award. Scythe, the first book in his series Arc of a Scythe is a Michael L. Printz Honor Book. He also writes screenplays for motion pictures and television shows.
Why you might want to read this book:
-Dystopian society that questions the workings of society’s morality
-Male and Female protagonists
-Delves into the idea of a picture-perfect world, or a world without flaw
-Perfect for fans of the Hunger Games
-Morally Ambiguous characters
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The Scythe Commandment:
1. Thou shalt kill
2. Thou shalt not kill with bias
3. Thou shalt grant immunity
4. Thou shalt kill the beloved of those who resist
5. Thou shalt serve humanity
6. Thou shalt live an exemplary life
7. Thou shalt not kill other scythes
8. Thou shalt claim no possessions
9. Thou shalt have no spouse or children
10. Thou shalt be beholden to no other laws
My Favorite Quotes-
“Without the threat of suffering, we can’t experience true joy.”
“Everyone is guilty of something, and everyone still harbors a memory of childhood innocence, no matter how many layers of life wrap around it. Humanity is innocent; humanity is guilty, and both states are undeniably true.”
“Mortals fantasized that love was eternal and its loss unimaginable. Now we know neither is true. Love remained mortal, while we became eternal.”
“We must always be vigilant because power comes infected with the only disease left to us; the virus called human nature.”
“Innocence is doomed to die a senseless death at our own hands, a casualty of the mistakes we can never undo.”
