At the ripe old age of twelve, Lina and Doon have just been assigned their jobs for life...the role they will play in the society of the City of Ember. Lina will become a messenger carrying messages throughout the city, a job which gives her entree into the highest reaches of power. Doon will become a Pipeworker, a job that will take him into the dark underpinnings of Ember.
Life in Ember has many constants and things that have been taken for granted for years but slowly things are beginning to change. The lights are beginning to flicker and the power is beginning to be unreliable and when Lina gets a peek behind the scenes at the shelves where the supplies and food are supposed to be stored as reserves, she is shocked to see that the quantities are no where near what they will need to survive.
The fates hand Lina a piece of paper titled "Instructions for Egress" and she and Doon begin the unthinkable task of looking for the truth about their world, their chances for survival and what might possible exist beyond their walls. One of the best sci-fi series for children today. Ages 9-13
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This series centers around two children living in a city under the earth. They do not know life any other way except as living in the semi-dark, eating canned food, and making do with dying technology. The children uncover a mystery that leads them to an extraordinary adventure which may save everyone in the city of Ember.
288 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0385736282
Recommended by: Emma S. McDonald, Inspring Teachers, Texas, USA
