Author: Mary E. Pearson
Publisher: Square Fish
Published: April 29, 2008
Genre: YA, Dystopian
Pages: 266
Source: Personal Copy
Seventeen-year-old Jenna Fox has just awoken from a year-long coma — so she’s been told — and she is still recovering from the terrible accident that caused it. But what happened before that? She’s been given home movies chronicling her entire life, which spark memories to surface.
But are the memories really hers? And why won’t anyone in her family talk about the accident? Jenna is becoming more curious. But she is also afraid of what she might find out if she ever gets up the courage to ask her questions. What happened to Jenna Fox? And who is she really?
Jenna isn’t sure who she is anymore, and it’s not your normal teenage angst, crisis of conscience sort of thing. Jenna Fox truly has no idea who she is. After a terrible accident and a year-long coma, Jenna wakes to a world where she has no memories of anything except those of being a toddler. She does, however know everything about world history, and she can spew the great works as though they’re simple conversation. But Jenna no longer eats. Jenna isn’t sure what’s real and what’s not, and Jenna has to decide if she’s strong enough to find out what really happened to her while she was asleep.
I’ve really never read any reviews for The Adoration of Jenna Fox. No, I’m not kidding. There was something about this book that made me not really understand it just by reading the back cover, so I didn’t pick it up. I’m so glad I read it now though. Mary E. Pearson has created a world within The Adoration of Jenna Fox that’s neither reality nor true fantasy. It’s not a utopia, but it’s not quite a true dystopia either. That’s the beauty of the book. The world in which Jenna lives is sort of a gray area. Neither black nor white, it’s a world where ethics are blurred and morals are changed to fit the person, and it’s world that both terrifies and fascinates me.
You know those books that stay with you long after you finish them? The Adoration of Jenna Fox is one of those. It’s a bit of a slow-burning book. The prose isn’t flowery or fancy, but rather simple and succinct, letting the voice of Jenna, the narrator, lead the story. She’s believable, relatable, and heartbreaking. She has one of the most realistic and endearing voices I’ve read in a dystopian book in a while. Her confusion resonates from every page and adds to the element of mystery coursing through the book. The Adoration of Jenna Fox is the story of one girl living in a society where things changed while she was asleep, and in order for Jenna to catch up, she must discover the truth about what’s happened to her.
I can’t believe I waited so long to read this one. I give The Adoration of Jenna Fox a 5 out of 5, hands down. While this book doesn’t really fit into one set genre, I’d recommend it to both YA and adult audiences, especially those who enjoy dystopian, science-fiction and mystery novels because there’s a bit of something for everyone.
