Thursday, June 4, 2015

Oh No!  A Giant Asteroid is on a Collision Course with the Earth!  What are We Going to DO????

Also known as - "We All Looked Up" by Tommy Wallach.

I chose this book because I liked the cover.  



Pretty cool, huh?  But sadly, I was not a huge fan of the book.  The word "Ardor" comes from the Latin word ardor which means burning or heat.Today the word has several meanings including a restless or transitory warmth of feeling (the sudden ardors of youth); intensity; zeal; loyalty; sexual excitement... or it can be the name of an asteroid that is probably on a collision course with earth and will - most likely - put an end to "life as we know it". While I didn't love the book I will acknowledge that it does throw out some interesting concepts that make you think. The author borrows a bit from Vonnegut concepts such as a karass (from "Cat's Cradle") which is a spontaneously forming group, joined by unpredictable links. Which really is not technically true of the group in the book since they do all go to the same high school. But, again, thought provoking. And the book starts with the concept of a Pyrrhic victory which describe struggles that end up ruining the victor. You might win the war - but it will cost you. And that one makes a bit more sense as an overarching theme for the story. I'd have to read it again to delve deeper - and I just did not like it enough to do that.
In a nutshell, the book really deals more with the philosophy of how to live your life than true apocalypse. But in true "end of the world" fashion, there's a lot of sex, drugs, alcohol and violence thrown in with the philosophy. Somehow it just didn't come together coherently for me.

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