One chance, two futures. That is where seventeen-year old Ann Forrest’s story begins. In her world, your life is determined by the XCAS. A test- much like our own SATs or ACTs- consisting of short paragraphs that make little sense. Ann’s life takes an unexpected turn as a man on a motorcycle threatens her and a mysterious foreign boy named Lep reveals a secret source of test answers. Ann soon finds herself in a life or death situation. This story explores the vast part of a world that is ruled by test scores and that is not too different from our own.
This story has action, emotion, corruption, rebellion, and everything a futuristic novel should have. The characters’ personalities are beautifully structured to react to their hostile environment. A relatively close version of what our livers could become is represented by Sleator in this novel. The only flaw was the author’s lack of detail when describing key parts of the story such as the characters’ physical properties, buildings like: the school and Grand Diamond/Emerald or Elise’s room;or even why the characters had the feelings they did. Overall, this was an an inspiring book(with its low points) which not only will entertain readers with the disgusting possibility of what the world may become, but also it will connect with readers whether or not they feel comfortable with the standardized tests that are given to the children of our generation.
Either my expectations were too high, or it could’ve been better. I Give this novel a 7.5/10
Test by William Sleator
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