kbonner528's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mm725's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
A fun quick read
lily_112358's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
rbooks__'s review against another edition
4.0
Heart warming easy read!! Read some of this book when I was little and always wanted to go back and finish it. The idea for the book was unique when it first came out. Will definitely be reading the second book.
Note: the reading level is middle grade/lower so I gave the stars accordingly! Please do not expect the writing level to be that of a YA book.
Note: the reading level is middle grade/lower so I gave the stars accordingly! Please do not expect the writing level to be that of a YA book.
paovilchis25's review against another edition
5.0
I found this book in my house and I didn’t think much of it, I decided to read it on a whim and I ended up reading one of the best books of the year. The City of Ember is a beautifully written, dystopian, mystery story about a city that lives in total darkness.
The city of Ember was built as a last refuge for the human race. Two hundred years later, the great lamps that light the city are beginning to flicker. When Lina finds part of an ancient message, she’s sure it holds a secret that will save the city. She and her friend Doon must decipher the message before the lights go out on Ember forever.
Like I said, I absolutely adored this book, it is fun, witty, filled with intrigued and very easy to read. I know this book was written for a much younger audience but I don’t care, I loved this book and I had the best time reading it. Like I mentioned this book is very easy to read, the writing style is fantastic, it allows you to perfectly picture what the city looks like and I think the author did a fantastic job in creating a young POV that was very easy to believe. The setting is described to perfection, the characters are well developed and you get a very clear character growth, and overall the whole tone of the story worked magnificently.
Talking about the characters, the main two characters are Lina and Doon. First talking about Lina I have to say I really liked her, I loved how excited she was about discovering new things, I loved how she took care of her family and made time to be with the people she cared about. We then have Doon, I really appreciated the fact that Doon was a flawed character, he had some anger issues to were talked about throughout the story and I liked how these issues were handled. The secondary characters aren’t as developed as the main were however they added depth to the story, I especially liked Clary.
You can tell this book is written for a younger audience based on the themes and lessons it portrays. The City of Ember talks about many themes that I believe are crucial for young kids to learn about such as the power of friendship, the danger of greed, the importance of family and mostly how crucial it is to be grateful of what we have.
Overall The City of Ember was a fantastic story about friendship and being grateful for what we have, it is told in a beautiful manner with the best characters ever and I honestly can’t wait to get my hands on the next books in the series. This was absolutely outstanding, 100% would recommend.
The city of Ember was built as a last refuge for the human race. Two hundred years later, the great lamps that light the city are beginning to flicker. When Lina finds part of an ancient message, she’s sure it holds a secret that will save the city. She and her friend Doon must decipher the message before the lights go out on Ember forever.
Like I said, I absolutely adored this book, it is fun, witty, filled with intrigued and very easy to read. I know this book was written for a much younger audience but I don’t care, I loved this book and I had the best time reading it. Like I mentioned this book is very easy to read, the writing style is fantastic, it allows you to perfectly picture what the city looks like and I think the author did a fantastic job in creating a young POV that was very easy to believe. The setting is described to perfection, the characters are well developed and you get a very clear character growth, and overall the whole tone of the story worked magnificently.
Talking about the characters, the main two characters are Lina and Doon. First talking about Lina I have to say I really liked her, I loved how excited she was about discovering new things, I loved how she took care of her family and made time to be with the people she cared about. We then have Doon, I really appreciated the fact that Doon was a flawed character, he had some anger issues to were talked about throughout the story and I liked how these issues were handled. The secondary characters aren’t as developed as the main were however they added depth to the story, I especially liked Clary.
You can tell this book is written for a younger audience based on the themes and lessons it portrays. The City of Ember talks about many themes that I believe are crucial for young kids to learn about such as the power of friendship, the danger of greed, the importance of family and mostly how crucial it is to be grateful of what we have.
Overall The City of Ember was a fantastic story about friendship and being grateful for what we have, it is told in a beautiful manner with the best characters ever and I honestly can’t wait to get my hands on the next books in the series. This was absolutely outstanding, 100% would recommend.
carkell's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
cpersin's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
adambwriter's review against another edition
4.0
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
Final Verdict: 3.25 out of 4.0
YTD: 4
Plot/Story:
3 – Plot/Story is interesting & believable.
It is sometime in the future, on planet Earth, and something rather terrible has happened. For reasons not explained (though one would infer nuclear apocalypse), most of the world’s population has been eliminated, and only a small few survive, deep below the Earth, generations after the catastrophic event. They have no knowledge of their true origins, or of what happened centuries before their births. All they know is a group of people named “The Builders” created their city and left it stocked with an inexhaustible amount of supplies. That is – the people of Ember thought their supplies were never-ending. As it happens, the people were to have vacated the city some time ago, using instructions left for them by the builders. They were supposed to have resurfaced and rebuilt their community above ground, before supplies ran out, but those instructions were lost – and it is up to two inquisitive and daring twelve-year-old children, who stumble upon the instructions, to find their way out and get a message to the rest of the city: Egress!
Read the full review at www.roofbeamreader.net
Final Verdict: 3.25 out of 4.0
YTD: 4
Plot/Story:
3 – Plot/Story is interesting & believable.
It is sometime in the future, on planet Earth, and something rather terrible has happened. For reasons not explained (though one would infer nuclear apocalypse), most of the world’s population has been eliminated, and only a small few survive, deep below the Earth, generations after the catastrophic event. They have no knowledge of their true origins, or of what happened centuries before their births. All they know is a group of people named “The Builders” created their city and left it stocked with an inexhaustible amount of supplies. That is – the people of Ember thought their supplies were never-ending. As it happens, the people were to have vacated the city some time ago, using instructions left for them by the builders. They were supposed to have resurfaced and rebuilt their community above ground, before supplies ran out, but those instructions were lost – and it is up to two inquisitive and daring twelve-year-old children, who stumble upon the instructions, to find their way out and get a message to the rest of the city: Egress!
Read the full review at www.roofbeamreader.net
laurelinwonder's review against another edition
3.0
This book was written for a slightly younger audience than I can usually read, which is really the main reason I give this book three instead of four stars. If I were younger, I think I would give it four or even five stars. It's interesting enough, dystopian enough, and the characters full enough. I'm just old, and found myself a little bored at times, but it was such a quick read that I didn't feel like I couldn't finish it. It ended on a bit of a cliff hanger, as series tend to do, so next up, book two, because why not? I am also just curious how this plot fleshes out over four books.