|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
|
Product Description
From Amazon
It is always night in the city of Ember. But there is no moon, no stars. The only light during the regular twelve hours of "day" comes from floodlamps that cast a yellowish glow over the streets of the city. Beyond are the pitch-black Unknown Regions, which no one has ever explored because an understanding of fire and electricity has been lost, and with it the idea of a Moveable Light. "Besides," they tell each other, "there is nowhere but here" Among the many other things the people of Ember have forgotten is their past and a direction for their future. For 250 years they have lived pleasantly, because there has been plenty of everything in the vast storerooms. But now there are more and more empty shelves--and more and more times when the lights flicker and go out, leaving them in terrifying blackness for long minutes. What will happen when the generator finally fails?
Twelve-year-old Doon Harrow and Lina Mayfleet seem to be the only people who are worried. They have just been assigned their life jobs--Lina as a messenger, which leads her to knowledge of some unsettling secrets, and Doon as a Pipeworker, repairing the plumbing in the tunnels under the city where a river roars through the darkness. But when Lina finds a very old paper with enigmatic "Instructions for Egress," they use the advantages of their jobs to begin to puzzle out the frightening and dangerous way to the city of light of which Lina has dreamed. As they set out on their mission, the haunting setting and breathless action of this stunning first novel will have teens clamoring for a sequel. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7–This truly superb audio recording of the novel by Jeane DuPrau (Random, 2003) takes place in the dark city of Ember, a decaying place with no natural light surrounded by the vast Unknown. Although ancestors had arranged for information on leaving Ember to be made available after the inhabitants have spent 200 years there, a corrupt mayor lost the information many years before the novel begins. Two hundred and forty-one years later, Ember's electrical lighting frequently fails, supplies are dwindling, and the populace is growing increasingly frightened. Twelve-year-old Doon and his acquaintance Lina are intent on finding a way to save Ember. After Lina finds a mysterious and fragmented paper titled "Instructions for Egress," they think they have a way out. Can they escape from the villainous mayor and his soldiers? Can they figure out the missing letters and words in the message? Do they find their way out of Ember and up to a post-apocalyptic Earth? Wendy Dillon, one of the most talented readers of audiobooks, does an amazing job of creating different voices for each character, has absolutely perfect diction, and skillfully conveys the building suspense. Exceptional care has been taken to faithfully convey the author's excellent tale through a combination of a superior narrator and evocative sound effects. This engaging novel is an exceptional audiobook.–B.Allison Gray, John Jermain Memorial Library, Sag Harbor, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting concept with weak execution,
By
This review is from: The City of Ember: The First Book of Ember (Paperback)
City of Ember will be good for children at the low end (8 or 9?) of the young adult age range. The concept is fairly interesting and the action moves along fast enough to keep readers interested.However - older readers will find this to be pretty weak stuff. The parallel between Ember running out of light bulbs and food and the earth running out of natural resources makes your eyes roll ever so slightly. The two main characters - Doon and Lina - are very thinly drawn. In fact, the author tries to give them depth by giving them one single character trait each: Doon has to control his anger which (when he gives in to it) has "unfortunate consequences", and Lina has to protect her very young baby sister (in theory making her a mature older sister character). Ho hum - doesn't work. The two characters are boring. A lot of it is very thin actually - the dozen pages where the children realize the mayor is a crook... try to expose him... and realize the whole system is against them and that they'll have to fend for themselves - pales against what is happening in other y/a fiction (Voldemort, and his predecessors in the "Dark is Rising" series for example). Anyway - good enough for your youngest child who will read anything, but doesn't have the depth that your older readers are now used to.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Overall quite good but a few problems...,
By "panda-lover" (Ottawa, ON) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The City of Ember: The First Book of Ember (Paperback)
Overall, this was a very nice book. It wasn't outstanding, but I really enjoyed the idea. People are trapped in a failing city with faulty lighting and diminishing supplies. The first chapter was what attracted me to read the book. As I picked The City of Ember for my book report, I had to analyze it and I found lots of errors in the idea. If there is no sun, how do the greenhouses work effectively? I also found that there were a lot of unanswered questions in the end, which was very exciting. The book ends a bit like a cliffhangar and I would like to read more about Lina and Doon. Basically, I really think you should read this book. It will keep you thinking for a while and there's a lot to say about it. It's also a good book to talk about with your friends.One small thing I found was that the cover was really well made. The paperback edition has a lightbulb that isn't very bright and the text is is glossy. I found this related very well to the novel. Oh, the things you do when finishing a book report...
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great read for grade 7s,
By A Customer
This review is from: The City of Ember: The First Book of Ember (Paperback)
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I am a grade 7 teacher of English, and had been looking for a replacement for The Giver. This book is perfect. Best news, there are two more like it on the way. This should really be a hit with my class.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
Most recent customer reviews |
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
