Jennifer M. (Kaydence) reviewed on + 380 more book reviews
Summary:
Aquifer is a place where water is rare. The Deliverer has to go below ground to negotiate with Rats that harvest water in order to bring any above ground to the town. This job has been passed down from father to son for as long as Luca can remember. His father has been training him since he was young to take over the position. The only problem is that Luca sees things a little differently than those around him. In a world where there is no emotion or creativity, Luca feels something. Then his father goes missing and Luca must go below to fetch water. While on his quest, he begins to uncover and question the life that he has always known.
My thoughts:
This month I've read two stories that have dealt with water shortage. Is this a pattern? While Aquifer takes a much different view than Not a Drop to Drink, they both have very similar "Does as told, save the water" type feelings. Both are also dystopians (my favorite genre). Aquifer is reminiscent of The Giver, a book that I have taught several times. The town is free of all creativity. There is no art or literature. Emotions are nonexistent, much like the pill that has to be taken in The Giver to tap down any urges. Positions are passed down along with all of the memories that are tied to those positions. Unfortunately, Friesen did not draw me in like Lowry does. It took me awhile to get into the world that Luca live in. Part of this was I needed a little more of a set up then I was given. I feel like I needed the world building to be front loaded in this novel instead of working through it a little before everything began to make sense. Because of this, I didn't bond with Luca. That's what kept me from loving this book. Without the tie to the character, I just wasn't completely sucked in. This is a book that I may try to read again in a little while now that I have ll of the background knowledge and see if a spark happens to pull me in further. Altogether, it's a good novel, much like one that I love, but is just not ringing for me right now.
Aquifer is a place where water is rare. The Deliverer has to go below ground to negotiate with Rats that harvest water in order to bring any above ground to the town. This job has been passed down from father to son for as long as Luca can remember. His father has been training him since he was young to take over the position. The only problem is that Luca sees things a little differently than those around him. In a world where there is no emotion or creativity, Luca feels something. Then his father goes missing and Luca must go below to fetch water. While on his quest, he begins to uncover and question the life that he has always known.
My thoughts:
This month I've read two stories that have dealt with water shortage. Is this a pattern? While Aquifer takes a much different view than Not a Drop to Drink, they both have very similar "Does as told, save the water" type feelings. Both are also dystopians (my favorite genre). Aquifer is reminiscent of The Giver, a book that I have taught several times. The town is free of all creativity. There is no art or literature. Emotions are nonexistent, much like the pill that has to be taken in The Giver to tap down any urges. Positions are passed down along with all of the memories that are tied to those positions. Unfortunately, Friesen did not draw me in like Lowry does. It took me awhile to get into the world that Luca live in. Part of this was I needed a little more of a set up then I was given. I feel like I needed the world building to be front loaded in this novel instead of working through it a little before everything began to make sense. Because of this, I didn't bond with Luca. That's what kept me from loving this book. Without the tie to the character, I just wasn't completely sucked in. This is a book that I may try to read again in a little while now that I have ll of the background knowledge and see if a spark happens to pull me in further. Altogether, it's a good novel, much like one that I love, but is just not ringing for me right now.
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