Margaret Atwood was in Ottawa yesterday to present her new book The Heart Goes Last. She was interviewed by Alan Neal from CBC at the Southminster United Church on Aylmer Avenue. The place was packed, but I managed to get a seat not too far from the stage. The audience consisted mainly of women of a certain age, even though I spotted a few men here and there. The Heart…
Tag: dystopia
James Dashner
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The Maze Runner by James Dashner
16-year-old Thomas wakes up in a dark elevator, and the only thing he remembers is his first name. When the doors open, a group of boys is staring at him, but they refuse to give him any information on where they are. Eventually, Thomas finds out that they live in the Glade, at the center of a maze. Some of the boys have been there for up to 2 years,…
Austin Dragon
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Future Shock: Paradise or Purgatory?
The following is a guest post by Austin Dragon, author of Rising Leviathan. If you would like to write a guest post on my blog, please send me an e-mail at contact@cecilesune.com. Is our future a happy, shiny “Star Trek” one or a grimy, hellish “Blade Runner” one? There was a time when Greece ruled the known world. Egypt was the center of Christianity. The Roman Empire was the greatest empire…
Guest Post
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Why YA?
The following is a guest post by Rebecca Jaycox, author of The Other Inheritance. If you would like to write a guest post on my blog, please send me an e-mail at contact@cecilesune.com. I’ve always been an avid fantasy and science fiction reader. I blame Star Wars for making me seek out Dune. Eventually, I discovered the joy of Urban Fantasy, Dystopia, and Steampunk. The latter three genres really showcased kick-butt female…
Fiction
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Divergent by Veronica Roth
In the first book in the Divergent Trilogy, Beatrice lives in a future Chicago where people are divided into 5 factions representing the main characteristic of each person: Abnegation (selflessness), Amity (love), Candor (honesty), Dauntless (courage) and Erudite (knowledge). Beatrice has spent her childhood in Abnegation with her family. At the beginning of the book, she has just turned 16, and she must choose which faction she will belong to…
Fiction
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MaddAddam by Margaret Atwood
I arrived an hour early at Southminster United Church in Ottawa on Tuesday 24 September 2013. Already there was a line for the event One on One with Margaret Atwood. Before getting to my seat, I was given 4 buttons: “Margaret Atwood MaddAddam: See the Future, Seek the Truth”. This was the first time I was handed a gift at a literary event. I thought this was a great souvenir,…
Fiction
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The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood
The Year of the Flood, the second book in the MaddAddam trilogy, came out 6 years after Oryx and Crake in 2009. It is not a sequel, but rather a companion to the first novel as it takes place on a concurrent time. Toby and Ren survived the epidemic that killed most of the human race. A series of flashbacks informs us that Toby was a therapist in a spa…
Fiction
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Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
On 24 September 2013, Margaret Atwood came to Ottawa to present the last book in the MaddAddam Trilogy. The event took place at the Southminster United Church, and the place was packed, a testament to the author’s fame. Margaret Atwood, all dressed in black with a red and gold shawl, talked about the dystopian world she imagined in the MaddAddam Trilogy. The story came to her almost in its entirety…