1.Bibliography –
Rosoff, M. (2004). HOW I LIVE NOW. New York, NY: Wendy Lamb Books ISBN-10: 0-385-74677-6 / ISBN-13: 978-0385746779
2. Plot Summary –
“Rosoff's story begins in modern day London, slightly in the future, and as its heroine has a 15-year-old Manhattanite called Daisy. She's picked up at the airport by Edmond, her English cousin, a boy in whose life she is destined to become intricately entwined. Daisy stays at her Aunt Penn's country farmhouse for the summer with Edmond and her other cousins. They spend some idyllic weeks together--often alone with Aunt Penn away travelling in Norway. Daisy's cousins seem to have an almost telepathic bond, and Daisy is mesmerized by Edmond and soon falls in love with him.
But their world changes forever when an unnamed aggressor invades England and begins a years-long occupation. Daisy and Edmond are separated when soldiers take over their home, and Daisy and Piper, her younger cousin, must travel to another place to work. Their experiences of occupation are never kind and Daisy's pain, living without Edmond, is tangible” (McLay, J., 2004).
3. Critical Analysis -
a. Characters –
The main characters are Elizabeth (Daisy), her Aunt Penn and her British cousins Piper, Edmond, Isaac, and Osbert. In evaluating this book – the main character Daisy undergoes an internal (as well as an external) journey and emotional growth that is more significant than the plot or action. The language Daisy and her cousins use is believeable and reflects the way a teenager thinks and talks at that age and stage of life.
“This riveting first novel paints a frighteningly realistic picture of a world war breaking out in the 21st century. Told from the point of view of 15-year-old Manhattan native Daisy, the novel follows her arrival and her stay with cousins on a remote farm in England. Soon after Daisy settles into their farmhouse, her Aunt Penn becomes stranded in Oslo and terrorists invade and occupy England. Daisy's candid, intelligent narrative draws readers into her very private world, which appears almost utopian at first with no adult supervision (especially by contrast with her home life with her widowed father and his new wife). The heroine finds herself falling in love with cousin Edmond, and the author credibly creates a world in which social taboos are temporarily erased. When soldiers usurp the farm, they send the girls off separately from the boys, and Daisy becomes determined to keep herself and her youngest cousin, Piper, alive. Like the ripple effects of paranoia and panic in society, the changes within Daisy do not occur all at once, but they have dramatic effects. In the span of a few months, she goes from a self-centered, disgruntled teen to a courageous survivor motivated by love and compassion. How she comes to understand the effects the war has had on others provides the greatest evidence of her growth, as well as her motivation to get through to those who seem lost to war's consequences. Teens may feel that they have experienced a war themselves as they vicariously witness Daisy's worst nightmares. Like the heroine, readers will emerge from the rubble much shaken, a little wiser and with perhaps a greater sense of humanity” (Publisher’s Weekly, 2004).
b. Plot –
Elizabeth, who likes to be known as Daisy, can’t stand that her father has taken a new wife who is pregnant. She flees New York to go and stay with her Aunt Penn (her deceased mother’s sister) and her cousins Osbert, Edmond, Isaac and Piper in England, whom she has never met. Her feelings for her cousin Edmond is just one of the growing up aspects that Daisy learns to deal with – love. Then war breaks out while she is staying there and separates Daisy and Piper from the boys, and her visit ends up being a “growing” up and learning adventure of a lifetime.
With this story there is no obvious moralizing, however Daisy and her cousin, Edmond, get closer than cousins are supposed to, and she does make mention to that fact. The climax and conclusion of the story were inevitable but they were not obvious and I was a little surprised at the ending, as it occurred quicker than I had anticipated; however it was true to the author’s story especially as there were definite twists and turns throughout that were unexpected.
"EVERY WAR HAS turning points and every person too.
Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy.
As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way” (Amazon, 2009).
c. Setting –
The story is set in rural England, on different farmlands and country-sides. War has broken out and much of life as everyone knew it has turned upside down.
The time it is set in is present day and it is believable, as not only are there cell phones, but the Internet and email are referred to in the book. Daisy does a wonderful job of describing the surrounding and her discriptions seem accurate. This story has many universal implications for readers as war can happen anywhere and at anytime – leaving no one completely safe from harm.
“Daisy, 15, a troubled New York City teen with a distant father, a wicked (and pregnant) stepmother, and an eating disorder, is sent to England to stay on a rambling farm with her deceased mother's sister's family. It is made up of Aunt Penn "who always has Important Work To Do Related to the Peace Process" and her brood of children: Osbert, 16; 14-year-old twins Isaac and Edmond; and 9-year-old Piper. As the kids spend more and more time together, Daisy warms to them, beginning to tune in to a seemingly psychic bond that the siblings share. When Aunt Penn travels to Oslo, Daisy begins a sexual relationship with Edmond. At the same time, hostile forces invade England. Originally enjoying the freedom of a world that seems to have forgotten them, the cousins are inevitably separated, leaving Piper and Daisy to struggle across the countryside and rejoin the others. Daisy's voice is uneven, being at times teenage vapid, while elsewhere sporting a vocabulary rich with 50-cent words, phrases, and references. In addition, Rosoff barely scratches the surface of the material at hand. At times, this is both intentional and effective (the enemy is never named) but for the most part the dearth of explanation creates insurmountable questions around the basic mechanisms of the plot. There is no explanation of how a small force could take out all communications (including cell phones) and proceed to overrun and to control an entire country. Perhaps even stranger, the ramifications of psychic abilities and underage sexual relationships between first cousins is never addressed” (Davey, D., 2004).
d. Theme –
The themes of journey, survival, trials and tribulations, family and love are all present in this story. A major theme dealing with growing up into adulthood emerges naturally from the story as we see our character Daisy age from 15 years old to 21, and live a lifetime of happiness, fear, love, loneliness, survival and family in that short amount of time.
“It would be much easier to tell this story if it were all about a chaste and perfect love between Two Children Against the World at an Extreme Time in History….
This is a story about love.
It’s also a story about hate, which is why I left New York in the first place. You don’t fly halfway across the world to live with a bund of people you never met, just for a laugh.
I guess if I’d known where it was all going to lead, I might have thought twice about stepping onto that plane. I might have worried a little more about Edmond being my cousin.
And me being fifteen.
But I didn’t. And in the end, those things didn’t matter as much as you think they would.
In the end, the world had bigger things to worry about than us” (Rosoff, M., 2004).
e. Style –
The author writes in very informal manner, through the character Daisy’s viewpoint. It was a little difficult for me at times to read, as the author did not ever use quotation marks to signify conversations. Also there were many capital letters used that are not normally used in different places in the story. I understood that the author capitalilized some words to help them stick out and bring more attention to their importance, but it was just not a usage I was familiar or comfortable with. I have not read any other of Meg Rosloff’s books yet, and I wonder if that is her distinctive stamp of her writing.
The dialog is natural and some-what believable, has a balance of narration and dialog and the tone, mood, and point of view is appropriate for a teenager running away from a stressful situation at home but learning to deal with a more stressful situation of love and war.
“Rosoff's writing style is both brilliant and frustrating. Her descriptions are wonderful, as is her ability to portray the emotions of her characters. However, her long sentences and total lack of punctuation for dialogue can be exhausting. Her narrative is deeply engaging and yet a bit unbelievable. The end of the book is dramatic, but too sudden. The book has a raw, unfinished feel about it, yet that somehow adds to the experience of reading it” (McLay, J., 2004).
f. Gender and Culture –
There is not the usual gender quotient of male vs. female protagonist; instead we see the female protagonist working along side and with the other male protagonist. The author doesn’t overload the story with cultural details but does present accurate cultural markers (like British tea) and presents real people and real problems. The characters are not typecasted nor stereotyped either positively nor negatively.
“A 15-year-old, contemporary urbanite named Daisy, sent to England to summer with relatives, falls in love with her aunt's "oldy worldy" farm and her soulful cousins--especially Edmond, with whom she forms "the world's most inappropriate case of sexual obsession." Matters veer in a startling direction when terrorists strike while Daisy's aunt is out of the country, war erupts, and soldiers divide the cousins by gender between two guardians. Determined to rejoin Edmond, Daisy and her youngest cousin embark upon a dangerous journey that brings them face to face with horrific violence and undreamt-of deprivation. Just prior to the hopeful conclusion, Rosoff introduces a jolting leap forward in time accompanied by an evocative graphic device that will undoubtedly spark lively discussions. As for the incestuous romance, Daisy and Edmond's separation for most of the novel and the obvious emotional sustenance Daisy draws from their bond sensitively shift the focus away from the relationship's implicit (and potentially discomfiting) physical dimension. More central to the potency of Rosoff's debut, though, is the ominous prognostication of what a third world war might look like, and the opportunity it provides for teens to imagine themselves, like Daisy, exhibiting courage and resilience in roles traditionally occupied by earlier generations” (Mattson, J., 2004)
g. Awards & recognitions –
** Possibly one of the most talked about books of the year, Meg Rosoff's novel for young adults is the winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize 2004.
** “HOW I LIVE NOW is a young adult novel by Meg Rosoff, first published in 2004. The book won three notable awards including the Michael L. Printz Award and received generally positive reviews.
Awards and nominations
• 2004 Won the Guardian Award[1]
• 2004 Shortlisted for the Whitbread Children's Book of the Year[2]
• 2004 Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal[3]
• 2005 Won the Michael L. Printz Award[4]
• 2005 Won the Branford Boase Award[5]
• 2005 Shortlisted for the Booktrust Teenage Prize[6]” (Wikipedia, 2009).
4. Review Excerpts –
** "A daring, wise, and sensitive look at the complexities of being young in a world teetering on chaos, Rosoff's poignant exploration of perseverance in the face of the unknown is a timely lesson for us all." -- People Magazine
** "This riveting first novel paints a frighteningly realistic picture of a world war breaking out in the 21st century . . . Readers will emerge from the rubble much shaken, a little wiser, and with perhaps a greater sense of humanity." -- Publishers Weekly, Starred
** “That rare, rare thing, a first novel with a sustained, magical and utterly faultless voice. After five pages, I knew she could persuade me to believe anything. This author's debut is undoubtedly stylish, readable and fascinating.” -- Mark Haddon, author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
** “A fantastic treat . . . Daisy is an unforgettable heroine.” -- Kliatt, Starred
** “A winning combination of acerbic commentary, innocence, and sober vision. . . . Hilarious, lyrical, and compassionate.” -- The Horn Book, Starred
** “Readers will remain absorbed to the very end by this unforgettable and original story.” -- The Bulletin, Starred
** “Powerful and engaging . . . a likely future classic.” --The Observer (U.K.)
** “A crunchily perfect knock-out of a debut novel.”-- The Guardian (U.K.)
5. Connections –
The following are more titles by Meg Rosoff:
** JUST IN CASE
** WHAT I WAS: A NOVEL
** THE BRIDE’S FAREWELL
** MEET WILD BOARS
** WILD BOARS COOK
** JUMPY JACK & GOOGILY
Book Trailers:
Another thing that is fun to do with books is to make a book trailer to get others interested in reading the story. Here is an example of a book trailer for HOW I LIVE NOW:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt_aDmkEPTQ
Audio Book on CD:
Another great idea for children, young adults and students of all ages is to listen to books in audio form. Here is a review for HOW I LIVE NOW on Audio CD:
“This is a mesmerizing production of a much-discussed young adult novel. Set in the very near future, the story involves unhappy, anorexic 15-year-old Daisy as she arrives in England to visit her cousins. As soon as she arrives, her aunt must depart for a short trip, leaving Daisy and her three cousins alone in their rural farmhouse. Very soon thereafter, an unnamed aggressor invades England. Kim Mai Guest seems to channel teenaged Daisy while making her actually listenable. She also excels with very young cousin Piper without resorting to a high-pitched little kid voice. For that matter, her rural British men are quite believable. Her pacing is particularly lovely, and while the book has received some criticism for its unique punctuation, it's never a problem in Guest's reading. A.C.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition” (Amazon, 2009).
References
McLay, J., (2004). Amazon.com review – How I live now, retrieved on November 21, 2009, from http://www.amazon.com/How-Live-Now-Meg-Rosoff/dp/0385746776
Publisher’s Weekly, (2004). Amazon – How I live now, retrieved on November 21, 2009, from http://www.amazon.com/How-Live-Now-Meg-Rosoff/dp/0385746776
Davey, D., (2004). Library School Journal – How I live now, retrieved on November 22, 2009, from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385746776/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
Mattson, J., (2004). Booklist – How I live now, retrieved on November 22, 2009, from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385746776/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
Rosoff, M. (2004). HOW I LIVE NOW. New York, NY: Wendy Lamb Books ISBN-10: 0-385-74677-6 / ISBN-13: 978-0385746779
Amazon, (1996-2009). Product discription – How I live now, retrieved on November 22, 2009, from http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/product-description/0385746776/ref=dp_proddesc_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books
Wikipedia, (2009). How I live now, retrieved on November 22, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_I_Live_Now
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