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Summary
Summary
Phaet Theta has lived her whole life in a colony on the Moon. She s barely spoken since her father died in an accident nine years ago. She cultivates the plants in Greenhouse 22, lets her best friend talk for her, and stays off the government s radar.
Then her mother is arrested.
The only way to save her younger siblings from the degrading Shelter is by enlisting in the Militia, the faceless army that polices the Lunar bases and protects them from attacks by desperate Earth-dwellers. Training is brutal, but it s where Phaet forms an uneasy but meaningful alliance with the preternaturally accomplished Wes, a fellow outsider.
Rank high, save her siblings, free her mom: that s the plan. Until Phaet s logically ordered world begins to crumble...
Suspenseful, intelligent, and hauntingly prescient, Dove Arising stands on the shoulders of our greatest tales of the future to tell a story that is all too relevant today"
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Generations ago, Phaet Theta's ancestors fled an environmentally damaged Earth for the Moon; now, Lunar colonists live carefully regulated lives under the governance of a strict, anonymous Committee and authoritarian Militia. When Phaet's journalist mother is forcibly quarantined (ostensibly for medical reasons, though dark purposes are clearly afoot), the 15-year-old and her siblings face living in the filthy, dangerous conditions of Shelter, where Lunar residents without resources are exiled. To keep her family safe, Phaet gives up her bioengineering dreams and her work in the Moon's greenhouses with her best (and be-smitten) friend Umbriel and becomes the youngest volunteer to join the Militia. Fortunately, she's smart, motivated, and-once she starts working out with equally driven cadet Wes Kappa-physically fit. In other words, well-equipped to navigate the now-familiar path of a dystopian heroine, gathering allies and identifying powerful enemies. Newcomer Bao's off-world setting and worldbuilding details are intriguing, but readers may struggle with Phaet's curiously emotionless affect, as well as some of the more formulaic elements at play in this series opener. Ages 12-up. Agent: Simon Lipskar, Writers House. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
The youngest recruit in the Militia, Phaet Theta sacrifices her entire future to save her family from ruin. Nothing can prepare Phaet (and readers) for the savagery and pain she must confront in order to survive, but she's a compelling character and readers will stay engaged in her journey. The matter-of-fact consideration of cultural diversity within the narrative is admirable. (c) Copyright 2015. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Phaet dreams of a life of scientific work among the greenhouses of the moon's colony, but when her mother is taken away by the government, she opts to join the militia early to save her brother and sister from the slums. There she discovers a strength she did not know and a calling that could tear apart the rigid structure of the colony. Bao's debut owes much to dystopian series like the Hunger Games and Divergent. Phaet is a compelling, do what needs doing kind of girl, and her desperation to succeed and secure her family's future is palpable. The military-training scenes are the most interesting part of the book, though readers familiar with military training or structure might require an extra dose of suspension of disbelief. Although the final section is a bit rushed and sacrifices much of the drama of Phaet's discovery of corruption in the colony's government, fans of dystopian series starring powerful girl heroes likely won't mind. Revelations at the end pave the way for a sequel.--Wildsmith, Snow Copyright 2015 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up-Set on the Moon in the not-so-distant future, this series opener follows an introverted teenager who has spent her life working hard and obeying the rules of the Committee, the governing body of the Moon. Water has been scarce and money is tight, but Phaet and her mother always find a way to provide for her little brother and sister since Phaet's father's death nine years earlier. When the teen's mother is quarantined, however, it is up to her to find a way to keep her family out of the filthy, poverty-stricken district known as "Shelter." Though it means deferring her dream of studying to become a scientist, the protagonist decides to join the Moon's Militia. If she can finish her training at the top of her class, she will become the youngest Militia Captain in history. Competition is fierce, and Phaet will need to work harder than ever before and learn everything she can from the top trainee, a quiet boy named Wes, who often seems more machine than human. Perceptive readers will recognize a burgeoning romance between the pair. Characters are well developed, especially strong-willed Phaet, and an even pace will keep teens turning pages. Fans of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game (Tor, 1985), Veronica Roth's Divergent (HarperCollins, 2011) and Marie Lu's Legend (Putnam, 2011) should flock to this well-written debut effort by 19-year-old Bao.-Liz Overberg, Darlington School, Rome, GA (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
In a far future in which humans have settled on the moon to escape wars and climate change on Earth, a teenage girl trains to become a soldier in order to support her family. Born and raised in the Lunar Bases, 15-year-old Phaet (whose name means "Dove") works part-time in the greenhouses with her best friend and hopes to become a Bioengineer. Her plans change, however, when her mother's illness and quarantine leave Phaet and her younger siblings destitute. To provide for her family, Phaet decides to begin her mandatory military training three years early. Her age and her silence (she rarely speaks) put her at a disadvantage; only her tentative friendship with Wes, a gifted trainee, gives her a fighting chance at survival, let alone at the high ranking she needs to earn prize money. Many of the elements of this debutthe totalitarian regime, amoral soldiers, class struggles, family secrets and love triangleare familiar from other post-apocalyptic novels. Unfortunately, neither the characterization nor the prose helps Bao's riff stand out from the crowd. Phaet's journey from elective near-mute to military whiz is barely credible, and Bao's awkward attempts at lyricism detract from the narrative action. A cliffhanger ending sets up the obligatory sequel. This derivative debut never finds its wings. (Science fiction. 13-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
Mom opens her rough, dry lips for the first time. "Just wait," she rasps to me. Of course I'll wait for her to come back. My siblings and I have never gone a day without seeing her. Now she'll be away for at least two months. The officers drag Mom out of our home. Struggling against them with the remainder of her strength, she kicks Tinbie by accident. He topples over, clicks twice and powers off. The yellow radiance vanishes from his eyes. Before the group passes through the doors, Mom gives me a hard stare, her dreamer's eyes bloodshot. "You've always been ready for this," she says. Then she's gone. Excerpted from Dove Arising by Karen Bao All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
