Interesting premise! Lisse is deemed unemployable. Their only hope is to join the Game. This game is unlike any other! They find themselves fighting for survival and in an unknown world. I felt like they entered the Twilight Zone, as they realized what the world had planned and executed for them. Student recommended this book for me to read:). ( )

This story was a good concept, there was some feeling and depth missing from the characters, and a few loose threads I would have liked explained more.
I think if I had read this as a teen I would have enjoyed it much more, but as an adult, it just lacked some things to make it a *great* read for me. I picked it up because it was in a list of books recommended that were similar to some other books I enjoyed, and it did hit the theme mark, it just was a little lacking for my current tastes. ( )

RGG: Set in a dystopian world, in which teenagers graduate from high school with no opportunity for employment, a group of teenagers participate in a "game" of survival. While character development is weak, the description of the settings and an urgency to know what's really happening make this a good read. Reading Level: 12-YA.

Too short, not in-depth enough for YA - better for MG (ages 10-12 especially, I'd say). Cover totally misleading because one of the points of the 'mystery' is whether they're in a game or not - they aren't wearing electrified VR goggles in the book. Still, a provocative read, with several discuss-able themes, developments, and characterizations.

Would be great for when the 6th-graders break into small groups, each group choosing a book. Other groups might choose Tuck Everlasting or The Giver, but this might appeal to readers who are turned off by the label that is given to those of 'classic' or 'canonical'. ( )

In a future dys/utopia, Lisse and her friends have all just graduated from school. But there are too many people and not enough jobs, and they are each left unemployed, on the dole, and at a loss for how to live in a highly regimented society with no place for them. They quickly learn hard lessons about dumpster-diving and squatting, and even faster, they lose interest in the hard-partying lifestyle of their fellow unemployed youths. When the group is invited to play a free virtual reality game, they jump at the chance to escape the grime and social stigmas of their daily lives. Living on an alien planet within "the game," each of the group finds new purpose to their lives. But when they disconnect, they're still just as poor and unwanted as ever. ( )