The Last Book In The Universe
by Rodman Philbrick
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Book Summary Information
Author: Rodman PhilbrickBrand: Blue Sky Press
Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2002-03-01
ISBN: 0439087597
Number of pages: 224
Publisher: Blue Sky Press
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780439087599
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of The Last Book In The Universe
Book Review: Book Review
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a book that takes place far into the future. A huge earthquake destroyed much of the land leaving the world poor and in fuins. Chaos controls the "cities" which they call latches. Each latch has its own boss that rules over it. Stealing is the only way to survive. Mobs like the Bully Bangers roam latches killing people for fun and stealing things from innocent people. Latches are bigging to fall apart even more though because the latch bosses are too busy leaving them unnattended because they're busy "probing". Everyone is too busy probing into fantasy lands to worry about what is happening now. No one thinks of the future. Some people probe all day long, just watching different "shows" in their minds. There is no education and books and libraries are things many people haven't heard of. The only civilized people are "proovs", genetically improved humans. They are smart and have perfect faces and are immune to many diseases. Proovs live in the fabulous city of Eden, but no normal has ever been there because only proovs are allowed to go there.
Although the setting is nothing like the land in the United States, the reader can visualize it in the book perfectly. The author does a fantastic job helping the reader visualize the world through the main character's eyes, Spaz. Spaz is just a teenage "normal" (what they call someone who'd not a proov) who the Bully Bangers strangely seem to take an interest in. There is one thing about Spaz that sets him apart from others. he's epileptic and is allergic to the electrode needles people stick in their heads to allow them to probe. Because of being epileptic, his family he lived with banished him from his latch and moved him to a different one. After that happened, he was forbidden to see his family again including Bean, his sister and best friend.
This sci-fi novel is full of adventure whil Spaz tries to save his sister Bean from dying from a disease. Spaz has to illegally cross latches to get to Bean and find a way to cure Bean if he is able to find her. With the help of memorable characters such as Ryter, a strange but interesting old man, and a proov named Lanaya, Spaz encounters all dangers to save Bean. Although the grim setting of this story, the author is still able to find ways to make pointsin the story funny. Spaz says funny things by making wise comments. In one part of the book, the proov, Lanaya, asks Spaz to tell a kid that she down't have any food for him. Spaz just says, "Tell him yourself." Another lovable and funny character in the story is Bean. Bean is a funny, innocent little girl who loves to think about the way things might be. Spaz's style of writing is layed back and relaxed, exactly what you'd expect a teenager to write like. He struggles with the conflict of hating the world, being an outcast, and dealing with discrimination. Because of being epileptic, he has to deal with people whispering things like "cancel him, the boy is a monster, a mistake, he never should have been born."
All the characters in the book are people you can truly relate to and believe that they existed. it's so interesting reading about the time that's never existed. It's so opposite to what you live in now that you can actually believe it. it makes you wonder how you would survive in that place and it makes you realize how grateful you should be of things you have today. Your imagination wanders thinking about what it would be like to live in the place. It's also funny reading about the characters describe things that used to be before the big earthquake that they have only seen ruin pieces of or heard stories of. Things such as "Trains that flew through the air, just overhead. Trains that moved so fast, they made their own wind. Trains that went faster than the sound they left behind." It's funny that things we use everyday, like elevators, are so magical or inexistent in this time setting.
If you have enjoyed reading other books from this author such as Freak the Mighty or Max the Mighty, or even if you haven't read any of these books, you are sure to be in for a treat if you read The Last Book In The Universe. You won't be able to put it down and you won't be dissipointed after reading it. It's a book easy to connect to and love. So if you want to find out about the adventure of this young man named Spaz and what happens to him, the friends he makes, and his sister, Bean, be sure to read this book!
Summary of The Last Book In The Universe
This fast-paced action novel is set in a future where the world has been almost destroyed. Like the award-winning novel Freak the Mighty, this is Philbrick at his very best.
It's the story of an epileptic teenager nicknamed Spaz, who begins the heroic fight to bring human intelligence back to the planet. In a world where most people are plugged into brain-drain entertainment systems, Spaz is the rare human being who can see life as it really is. When he meets an old man called Ryter, he begins to learn about Earth and its past. With Ryter as his companion, Spaz sets off an unlikely quest to save his dying sister -- and in the process, perhaps the world.
It's the story of an epileptic teenager nicknamed Spaz, who begins the heroic fight to bring human intelligence back to the planet. In a world where most people are plugged into brain-drain entertainment systems, Spaz is the rare human being who can see life as it really is. When he meets an old man called Ryter, he begins to learn about Earth and its past. With Ryter as his companion, Spaz sets off an unlikely quest to save his dying sister -- and in the process, perhaps the world.
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