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Young adult book reviews for ages 12 and up - middle school and high school students




*The Skyborn* by Paul Collins- young adult book review
 



 
The Skyborn
by Paul Collins
Grades 8-11 272 pages Starscape October 2005 Hardcover    

The Skyborn is a continuation of The Earthborn Wars series by Paul Collins. Large portions of Earth’s population escaped a devastating holocaust in huge spaceships. The stragglers left on Earth survived only through escaping deep underground. After 300 years, all kinds of tribal differences, including religion, food and slight genetic mutations, increased the dissent between various groups. Humans were not the only lifeform affected by the changes on Earth.

Gillian and Sarah are Earthborn sisters lucky enough to inherit the right gene that makes them less susceptible to a degenerative disease plaguing a large percentage of the Earthborn, causing them to age at an accelerated rate far too early in life. Sarah leads a camp of survivors who have scratched out their existence through ingenuity and hard work. Constantly threatened by surrounding tribes of survivors and marauders, the farmfolk have begun to worry if their numbers are large enough to withstand a serious threat. When Tolk and his clan of 60 scraggly, prejudiced survivors wander into camp looking for refuge, the committee finds it difficult to turn them away, even when it means their people may face food rationing.

Within a few days journey from the farm, one of the ships has landed and is only the first to return. Threatened by an ingrained Skyborn prejudice and their dictatorial government, the Earthborn must find a new way to survive. Luckily, some Starborn do not fit in, and for this they have been forced out of the society. Having these people included in their numbers give the Earthborn a tiny hint of hope against a monstrous adversity.

There is an interesting twist where just as they find a way to put up a fight against the first Starship, another ship returns, bringing an even greater threat to everyone’s survival.

The Skyborn combines futuristic science fiction and space travel with romance and suspense in an interesting and appealing manner. I truly enjoyed the book. My hands were sweating during the scenes with the miles of ladders and underground tunnels. And I laughed at Gillian’s romantic antics with Welkin, one of the Skyborn who joins the Farm. However, about three-quartes through the 272-page book, I began to lose interest and skipped a few pages ahead. The ending is nonetheless quite enjoyable, and Collins leaves enough room for at least one more novel in this series.

Young adult book reviews for ages 12 and up - middle school and high school students

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