The Young World (Young World Series #1)

by Chris Weitz

Overview

"Chris Weitz has made a beautiful transition from writing and directing films to novels. The Young World is populated with characters you won't forget and a story as fresh and urgent as Divergent."--James Patterson, #1 NY Times bestselling author of Maximum Ride.
Welcome to New York, a city ruled by teens.
After a mysterious Sickness wipes out the rest of the population, the young survivors assemble into tightly run tribes. Jefferson, the reluctant leader of the Washington Square tribe, and Donna, the girl he's secretly in love with, have carved out a precarious existence among the chaos.
But when a fellow tribe member discovers a clue that may hold the cure for the Sickness, five teens set out on a life-altering road trip, exchanging gunfire with enemy gangs, escaping cults and militias, braving the wilds of the subway--all in order to save humankind.
This first novel from acclaimed film writer/director Chris Weitz is the heart-stopping debut of an action-packed trilogy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316226288
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	06/23/2015
Series:	Young World Series , #1
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	705,728
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 5.40(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Chris Weitz is an Oscar-nominated writer and director. His films include Twilight: New Moon, A Better Life, About a Boy, The Golden Compass, American Pie, Cinderella, and the upcoming Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The Young World is his first YA trilogy.

Editorial Reviews

…Weitz is a successful screenwriter because he is a fine—at times terrific—storyteller. Dystopian fantasies depend on details, and here they are often unforgettably right.

The New York Times Book Review - Adam Gopnik

04/28/2014
Screenwriter/director Weitz (The Golden Compass; About a Boy) kicks off a post-apocalyptic trilogy with a riveting adventure in which teenagers—the only ones immune to a fatal plague known as the Sickness—have inherited the Earth and are fighting over the remnants of New York City. Narration alternates between Jefferson, the cautious and protective leader of the Washington Square Clan, and Donna, who Jefferson is falling for. When one of the group’s members, Brainbox, discovers a clue that might explain the origin of the Sickness, a few members of the tribe embark on an epic cross-town quest for information. As they make their way through the ruined city, they contend with cultists, cannibals, slavers, wild animals, and more. Weitz offers a satisfying YA interpretation of the Greek classic Anabasis, brimming with grisly encounters and gallows humor. He also finds room to touch upon issues of race, class, commercialism, and sexuality in nuanced moments that are sharply juxtaposed with the near-constant dangers and seeming hopelessness of the larger picture. A game-changing cliffhanger will have readers ready for the next book. Ages 15–up. Agent: Suzanne Gluck, William Morris Endeavor. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"A broken NYC is so compelling that readers will find it hard to put this book down."— School Library Journal

"A post-apcalyptic teen novel that's far from just another post-apocalytic teen novel."—Kirkus

"Telling his story in the alternating voices of Jeff and Donna, noted film director Weitz, in his first YA novel, has done a good job of meticulously building his postapocalyptic world."—Booklist

From the Publisher

Chris Weitz’s postapocalyptic adventure is a gritty, taut, and unexpectedly funny gem, made even more engrossing by expert narration. A mysterious Sickness has changed New York into a haunting alien world, and those remaining have banded into tribes for survival. But when two teenagers find a clue to a cure, they must embark on a journey into the unknown to save humankind. Jose Julian and Spencer Locke perfectly capture the brash, vibrant energy of these two youthful protagonists, timing their quips, confessions, and grousing perfectly, and creating a tense, compelling relationship that propels the plot forward. Through their eyes, the world of the story becomes a thoroughly engrossing one that readers will find hard to leave behind. B.E.K. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2014 - AudioFile

2014-04-09
A twisted Neverland where you don't get older, you just die. As if traffic and congestion weren't enough to cope with in Manhattan, the rapid-fire, incurable Sickness has begun eliminating New Yorkers. Strangely, the only unaffected residents are teenagers. Stranger still, once the surviving teens reach their 18th birthdays, fever, coughs, delirium and death swiftly follow. A short life means there's no reason for civilized order, so New York devolves into Mad Max-like chaos. Union Square and Washington Square are no longer overpriced zip codes, they're pocket territories for tribes of gun-toting teens as likely to trade a pig for people as they are to resort to cannibalism. When the brainiac of one of these tribes theorizes that he can cure the Sickness, a cluster of five dives headfirst into the task of either saving civilization or prematurely ending their already doomed lives. Inclusion of New York landmarks lends an authenticity that makes the chaos frighteningly plausible. Through the dual narration of Jefferson, the focal tribe leader, and Donna, his crush, veteran screenwriter and director Weitz presents a veritable dichotomy of literary and commercial; Jefferson's chapters are intellectually elevated, while Donna often sounds like an elongated Facebook post. The action perseveres, the sex, blood and violence dominate, and race and class clashes continue headlong into the sequel. A post-apocalyptic teen novel that's far from just another post-apocalyptic teen novel. (Post-apocalyptic adventure. 13 & up)

Kirkus Reviews