The Program
by: Suzanne Young
General Information:
Genre: YA; dystopian
Copyright: 2013
Pages: 405
Price: $8.87
ISBN: 9781442445802
Synopsis: In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program. Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories. Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.
Cover: I believe the cover went with the book but I didn't like it all that much. I thought it was well designed for the book because the "program" is very clean and pristine which is what the cover looks like. Of course this review is only for The Program but I do not like that the second cover doesn't go with this one. Series covers should all look similar but these don't.
Theme: This is a dystopian book so it is set far into the future in a world that is not like ours but an over lying theme that you can take from this is to stick up for yourself. I understand the rules of the world but you can still stand up!
Point of View: The narrator is Sloane; everything that happened was in her point of view. It was in first person.
Intended Audience: This is a YA book. It was written for the older bracket of YA because there were bigger words and not written below teenagers.
Author Style: It sounded like Suzanne Young was a very smart writer and knew what she was talking about. I even had to look up some words!
Characters: Sloane: I really liked her in the beginning because she genuinely stuck to her guns and was open and honest. By the end of the book she totally changed in what she was doing and her attitude. The author really wrote her well because it felt like you actually knew her.
James: Yet again I loved him in the beginning because he was such a good person but I don't know if he was supposed to be perceived as this but by the end of the book he was a horrible person! He was one of my most hated characters.
Plot: The idea of this book was really cool but I wish the world was a little more built up. Suzanne Young wrote the entire plot really well to make it flow really well. But I will have to say that there was a lot of information included that was not important to the story.
Setting: It took place in the future. It was set in a neighborhood and in the program.
My Opinion: I really liked the book because all in all it was a great story and world. It left me wanting to read the next one right away. It did have a lot of slow parts but I have to remind myself that it is only to give the information that's needed. But on the other hand there were no really big 'Wow' moments. I am going to be picking up the next book in the near future but it didn't live up to the hype. If you are looking for a good dystopian you could pick this one up but you might want to look for another one.
Score:
Would you recommend this book? Maybe
If you like this book then check out these:
Pages: 405
Price: $8.87
ISBN: 9781442445802
Synopsis: In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program. Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories. Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them.
Cover: I believe the cover went with the book but I didn't like it all that much. I thought it was well designed for the book because the "program" is very clean and pristine which is what the cover looks like. Of course this review is only for The Program but I do not like that the second cover doesn't go with this one. Series covers should all look similar but these don't.
Theme: This is a dystopian book so it is set far into the future in a world that is not like ours but an over lying theme that you can take from this is to stick up for yourself. I understand the rules of the world but you can still stand up!
Point of View: The narrator is Sloane; everything that happened was in her point of view. It was in first person.
Intended Audience: This is a YA book. It was written for the older bracket of YA because there were bigger words and not written below teenagers.
Author Style: It sounded like Suzanne Young was a very smart writer and knew what she was talking about. I even had to look up some words!
Characters: Sloane: I really liked her in the beginning because she genuinely stuck to her guns and was open and honest. By the end of the book she totally changed in what she was doing and her attitude. The author really wrote her well because it felt like you actually knew her.
James: Yet again I loved him in the beginning because he was such a good person but I don't know if he was supposed to be perceived as this but by the end of the book he was a horrible person! He was one of my most hated characters.
Plot: The idea of this book was really cool but I wish the world was a little more built up. Suzanne Young wrote the entire plot really well to make it flow really well. But I will have to say that there was a lot of information included that was not important to the story.
Setting: It took place in the future. It was set in a neighborhood and in the program.
My Opinion: I really liked the book because all in all it was a great story and world. It left me wanting to read the next one right away. It did have a lot of slow parts but I have to remind myself that it is only to give the information that's needed. But on the other hand there were no really big 'Wow' moments. I am going to be picking up the next book in the near future but it didn't live up to the hype. If you are looking for a good dystopian you could pick this one up but you might want to look for another one.
Score:
Would you recommend this book? Maybe
If you like this book then check out these:
