When Stars Go Out

Gr 9 Up—In the near future, the U.S. government places teenagers in compounds to live and work. The nefarious government is attempting to "snuff out Christianity," and "trying to take the place of a God they shoved out of the public eye a long time ago," by prohibiting religious ceremonies outside of "government-controlled churches and mosques." Reed, a sullen 18-year-old, initially chafes at this control, but quickly gets distracted by the bustling social scene and his newfound popularity. He becomes part of a secret Christian group and begins to question his choices and the world around him. Although this novel has dystopian trappings, it is mostly Reed's conversion story and an apologia for Christian fundamentalism. Readers who do not ascribe to this belief system will find multiple elements problematic: the only non-white character "seemed to have Arab blood in him;" a female character is labeled a "bad girl," accused of hunting boys for sex and status; the one gay character "got bolder and even a little hostile" after coming out; a mass shooting is attributed to a divine purpose as a "warning to get off the sinking ship." The plot lacks cohesion, instead presenting a collection of heavy-handed morality lessons interspersed with scenes of danger and violence. Numerous plot points and character actions do not make sense, and are handily explained away as miracles or God's will. Grey uses evocative language, which sometimes devolves into clumsy, flowery prose.