The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Creative premise: an underground city, two children determined to save that city, and a journey of no return. I liked it better than The Giver. I liked it enough that I will read the sequel.
Intriguing, fast paced, action packed. It's the rare novel that will engage children while maintaining its literary integrity and imparting something worthwhile. The City of Ember is a great introduction to a darker genre than many children will have read by 4th Grade, but not so frightening that it would discourage them from exploring more well-developed dystopian novels as they get older. In terms of books that get kids interested in reading without rotting their brains, I'd give this one a big thumbs up.

quotes:
“The trouble with anger is, it gets hold of you. And then you aren't the master of yourself anymore. Anger is. And when anger is the boss, you get unintended consequences.”

“People find a way through just about anything.”

“The main thing to do is pay attention. Pay close attention to everything, notice what no one else notices. Then you'll know what no one else knows, and that's always useful.”

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