The City of Ember is a dystopian/adventure novel that takes place in an underground city called Ember. Ember was created in the past by a group called the builders when the conditions above ground became unfit for people to live in. The story follows two 12-year-old protagonists, Lina and Doon. In the beginning of the book Lina and Doon attend a traditional ceremony in which children their age are randomly selected for various careers in Ember. The two are disappointed with their jobs and decide to switch with each other. One day, Lina finds a box in her closet that belonged to her great-great grandfather who used to be the mayor of Ember. The box contains parts of a paper that she believes will help save the citizens of Ember from their now deteriorating city. As a result, Lina and Doon begin to work together to piece together the message and find a way out of Ember. However, this leads to conflict in the story as the current mayor of Ember wants the people of Ember to believe that Ember is alone in the world and surrounded by darkness as a means to hide essential resources from the population and save himself. In the end, Lina, Doon, and Poppy, Lina’s younger sister, piece together the message and leave Ember via a secret river in the pipeworks designed by the builders to allow the people of Ember to return to the world when the time was right. Doon, Lina, and Poppy escape before they are caught by the mayor and learn about the outside world, seeing sunlight for the first time. They leave exit instructions with their friend in Ember in hopes that the remaining population will one day join them. Overall, I would recommend this book for students in grades 4-6 who enjoy dystopian books with aspects of mystery and adventure.
Tag Archives: Dystopian
The City of Ember
Many hundreds of years ago, the city of Ember was created by the Builders as a last refuge for the human race. Two hundred years later, the city is slowly running out of power and supplies, and the lamps that light the city are slowly beginning to flicker. When the protagonist, 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 race to figure out the clues before Ember becomes engulfed by darkness. Lina and Doon could be Ember’s last hope. Can they decode the message left by the original Builders? Will the city trust the duo to lead them to safety in the outside world?
The City of Ember’s protagonist, Lina, was one of the first protagonists I felt that I could connect to on a personal level from a young age. Determined to venture into the unknown, Lina’s bravery and urgency to save her city stood out to me. This futuristic fantasy is what would eventually lead me to my interest in Dystopian fiction, and allow me to re-imagine society, and the future of humanity, in different ways as a result of human causes.