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The Young World Chris Weitz Books

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The Young World Chris Weitz Books

While wiping adults from the face of the earth and having teens be on their own isn't a new concept, I did like The Young World. Just two years ago, the Sickness swept through, killing all of the adults and young kids. Teens only survived because of their raging hormones. Now, at least in New York City, teens have created their own societies and are fighting to stay alive. Then Jefferson and his crew leave their corner of the world to try and find the cure, or die trying. Or just die in a a few years when the Sickness takes them, too.

The world of The Young World is a dark one. It's scary to imagine hordes of teenagers with guns, swords, and bombs defending their territory and meager resources. But that's exactly what's going on. There may be significantly less mouths to feed, but food is still hard to come by when no one is producing anything. Of course, money is also useless, so scavenging and bartering are the ways to go. There are some places where the teens have managed to get electricity going and started farms, but it's still not much. Plus, why bother when you're going to be dead soon?

I did spend a lot of time wondering what's happening elsewhere in the world. We are told that the Sickness started in New York, then worked it's way West. From what I understand, it all happened pretty quickly after that first person showed up at the hospital, quickly infecting everyone around them. But what about outside of North America? It's not hard to imagine that someone infected, or even a teenage carrier, got onto a plane and spread the disease. It's not like either of our two narrators would know that though, since there is no more television or internet. But if that wasn't the case, wouldn't someone in another country have known what was happening, and maybe tried to make contact? I don't know. I just wanted to know more, but the limited perspective didn't allow for that.

The Young World is a diverse read! One of our narrators, Jefferson, is half Japanese. He carries around an ancestral samurai sword and talks about Buddhism (although I don't think he practices, but his father did). Peter is also part of Jeff's group to find the cure, and he's black and gay. Then there's SeeThrough, who the group picks up on their way out, who recently emigrated from China. We also learn about some race wars happening in parts of the city. Even though most of the population is gone, discrimination is very much still a part of life.

The Young World is basically a Dystopian road trip novel. It's fast paced and dangerous. There's a lot of sick stuff happening in the few blocks that Jefferson, Donna, Peter, Brainbox, and SeeThrough travel. In some ways these kids are mature beyond their years, but in others they're just scared and scrambling along in the dark without growns up to help them. Then that ending....WTF? Where did they come from? How is it possible? Is it even what they really think it is? I don't know! I guess I'll have to continue and find out.


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The Young World Chris Weitz Books Reviews

UPDATED REVIEW Recently it was announced that Chris Weitz has signed on to write a stand alone Star Wars movie. With any luck, that announcement will bring a fresh round of curious readers to this book.

The Golden Compass, an excellent 2007 adventure genre film adapted and directed by Weitz, though excised of its more controversial elements by the studio, had it's gross tarnished by an unfair pre-release dialogue. "Would Jesus see this film?" was a magazine headline. I think the new and current Pope would be fine with it, and honestly, I don't know if Jesus would have spent his time watching sci-fi adventure films ANYWAY, as cool as he was/is. But the damage was done. North America wasn't going to go see a film that was buzzed about as if it was a gateway to their children questioning Sunday services.

What was lost in that dialogue about the movie was what an effective and fun movie Golden Compass was. I believe it's sort of a collective lost we didn't get to experience more of the films. The elements for a very satisfying trilogy were in place.

Even all these years later Weitz released, via Twitter, his first written draft of The Golden Compass. Its a 180 page adaptation filled with reverence for the source material, and is also what he calls "unfilmable". It's also a testament to his skill as a writer, his thoughtful approach to a property, and it's release a little bit of residual artistic sadness that the film wasn't given the chance it may have deserved (nor the final cut he had intended).

So what in the world does all this have to do with his book?

Well, "world" is the operative word. This dude knows how to build a “world”; detailed, fast moving and a ton of fun thanks to some memorable characters insights on a post-apocalyptic predicament, and their break-neck journey to solve it.

ORIGINAL REVIEW

Firstly, I haven't read a ton of Young Adult Fiction since the 80s , The Golden Compass and Potter being the sole exceptions. (I’m not even sure those qualify as YA.) I am however a fan of Chris Weitz, and was hoping to see his voice and influences loud and clear. I wasn't disappointed.

Weitz has a proven track-record for writing and directing kids. This spirit is alive and well here . The burgeoning struggle with identity roles and pre-mature forced nostalgia, all facilitate the plot and inject tremendous humor and insight. These kids miss Facebooking as much living in the safety of a in the world that created social media. Yes, there are a ton of pop-culture references, but this abandoned generation is one where this is the culture that has shaped their lives. They mourn the Gods of Google and Facebook. Of SMS and IPhones. It's easier to mourn these losses then the overwhelming crush of the entirety of the adult world. Their self-consciousness in referencing a Gone World isn't lost on these kids, and provides much of the humor throughout. "What matters now?"

If anyone is prepared to adapt and embrace wild hope, or even act out of "meh-whatever-might-as-well" indifference, it's teenagers. They do adapt, in both vicious and inspiring ways. And with a lot of welcome humor.

There is nothing like the buzz of getting wrapped up in a good story that is well told.
Great novel for young adults and mature teenagers. Keep your 13 and younger teens away from it. Compelling story, great character development, but somewhat inappropriate.
Two years ago a virus wiped out the young and old, leaving teens in New York to fight for survival in a world with no future. Jefferson inherits the leadership of his community when his older brother reaches adulthood and, as expected, dies. In a bid to put off the necessary decisions that come with leading, he decides to go on a scavenging expedition for a scientific journal that might be the answer to the virus. I gave this book four stars because every high school student, male and female, who has picked it up has recommended it to me, so it is engaging its target audience. The action is non stop, and the characters are recognizeable stereotypes of every teen you have ever known. It was funny and shocking and a new horror was around every corner. There was even a lot to think about in regard to current social issues, which are highlighted by the ideologies that the different tribes adopt. While my students had no complaints, I have to say that I was really turned off by one of the narrators -- she drove me crazy for a while, but her narrative voice does become more readable after the first few chapters. Jefferson was also a problem for me because he felt under developed and flat -- there was no growth for him as a character. Why is he a major character, much less a narrator if the reader isn't going to be privy to those thoughts and feelings that show he is getting something out of all he experiences? I am still thinking about the ending. It was so unexpected and inexplicable that I feel cheated. I did catch it on sale for $2.99, so I felt that I got my money's worth of entertainment.
While wiping adults from the face of the earth and having teens be on their own isn't a new concept, I did like The Young World. Just two years ago, the Sickness swept through, killing all of the adults and young kids. Teens only survived because of their raging hormones. Now, at least in New York City, teens have created their own societies and are fighting to stay alive. Then Jefferson and his crew leave their corner of the world to try and find the cure, or die trying. Or just die in a a few years when the Sickness takes them, too.

The world of The Young World is a dark one. It's scary to imagine hordes of teenagers with guns, swords, and bombs defending their territory and meager resources. But that's exactly what's going on. There may be significantly less mouths to feed, but food is still hard to come by when no one is producing anything. Of course, money is also useless, so scavenging and bartering are the ways to go. There are some places where the teens have managed to get electricity going and started farms, but it's still not much. Plus, why bother when you're going to be dead soon?

I did spend a lot of time wondering what's happening elsewhere in the world. We are told that the Sickness started in New York, then worked it's way West. From what I understand, it all happened pretty quickly after that first person showed up at the hospital, quickly infecting everyone around them. But what about outside of North America? It's not hard to imagine that someone infected, or even a teenage carrier, got onto a plane and spread the disease. It's not like either of our two narrators would know that though, since there is no more television or internet. But if that wasn't the case, wouldn't someone in another country have known what was happening, and maybe tried to make contact? I don't know. I just wanted to know more, but the limited perspective didn't allow for that.

The Young World is a diverse read! One of our narrators, Jefferson, is half Japanese. He carries around an ancestral samurai sword and talks about Buddhism (although I don't think he practices, but his father did). Peter is also part of Jeff's group to find the cure, and he's black and gay. Then there's SeeThrough, who the group picks up on their way out, who recently emigrated from China. We also learn about some race wars happening in parts of the city. Even though most of the population is gone, discrimination is very much still a part of life.

The Young World is basically a Dystopian road trip novel. It's fast paced and dangerous. There's a lot of sick stuff happening in the few blocks that Jefferson, Donna, Peter, Brainbox, and SeeThrough travel. In some ways these kids are mature beyond their years, but in others they're just scared and scrambling along in the dark without growns up to help them. Then that ending....WTF? Where did they come from? How is it possible? Is it even what they really think it is? I don't know! I guess I'll have to continue and find out.