The People of Sparks (Books of Ember)

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Editorial Reviews:

Amazon.com Review
When teenagers Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow lead their people up out of the Earth, fleeing their dying underground city of Ember, everything is new and a little frightening to the refugees--the sun and the moon, birds, trees, fireand the people of Ember are strange to the 322 citizens of Sparks, one of the few towns on Earth to survive the time of The Disaster. How can they feed and house the 400 Emberites, the leaders of Sparks wonder, when they have just begun to be able to feed themselves comfortably? But if they dont, these underground people with no survival skills will surely die in the wastelands. They take them in as best they can, but grumbling and bad feeling grows on both sides. Lina returns from a failed search for her persistent vision of a city of light to find the town, egged on by the power-hungry young thug Tick, once again at the point of war, forgetting how the Earth has been destroyed before. But Lina has seen the devastation left by The Disaster, and so she risks a brave move of reconciliation, and when Doon exposes Ticks trickery, the two sides join as the new people of Sparks.

In this exciting and solidly constructed sequel to The City of Ember, Jeanne DuPrau moves the story on entrancingly, bringing along her cast of characters from underground and adding new dimensions and relationships as the action escalates to a satisfying conclusion that still allows for further volumes in this fine fantasy. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell

Product Description
The People of Sparks picks up where The City of Ember leaves off. Lina and Doon have emerged from the underground city to the exciting new world above, and it isn’t long before they are followed by the other inhabitants of Ember. The Emberites soon come across a town where they are welcomed, fed, and given places to sleep. But the town’s resources are limited and it isn’t long before resentment begins to grow between the two groups. When anonymous acts of vandalism push them toward violence, it’s up to Lina and Doon to discover who’s behind the vandalism and why, before it’s too late.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews: Read 101 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Lightning strikes again August 18, 2004
53 out of 54 found this review helpful

Although this is a very different book than The City of Ember, it is a perfect sequel, and not disappointing in the least. While The City of Ember may have been more inventive, in terms of an underground city that was on its last leg, this is infinitely more profound.

It's still inventive, though. A terrible Disaster has befallen the Earth, and the Emberites learn that they were sent to live below the Earth, in the event that the Disaster did, in fact, occur, and so that one day they could return to the surface and repopulate the world. If that isn't a terrific idea, I'm not sure what is.

The Emberites luckily find themselves in one of the more prosperous towns. As most in the town of Sparks are good and decent people, they agree to feed these strange newcomers for a certain amount of time, and while doing so teach them basic survival skills. As one can imagine, no Emberite possesses the skills to survive on the surface. All they knew was Ember, and the simple rules that governed survival in that city.

Sparks has its own governing rules, and Ms. DuPrau really shows a deft hand at creating intriguing cultures. It's obvious that she gave considerable thought to a post-apocalyptic world, and her vision of it is refreshing and true.

Sadly, greed raises its ugly head, on both sides, and the cultures have a terrible clash. But an important lesson is learned. It may seem trite to some, but it really is a powerful message. Paraphrased, it goes something like this: If someone does something mean to you, instead of doing something mean in return, try and do something good for them. The opportunity for such a deed presents itself, and we see this good faith effort in action. If I say more, it will be too revealing.

The ending of the book caused odd salty drops to fall from my eyes, because it brought the entire sequence full circle. The Emberites, we see, had something to teach the people of Sparks - and perhaps the whole world. Together, they are stronger than they are apart.

It's a heartwarming and beautiful story. I look forward to her next book with immense anticipation.

5 out of 5 stars

A worthy successor to City of Ember July 27, 2004
27 out of 31 found this review helpful

'The People of Sparks' is an excellent sequel to 'City of Ember' although the setting is not quite as original. Jeanne DuPrau deftly avoids the trap that many new authors fall into of trying to replicate the format that succeeded in the first book. While 'The People of Sparks' presents a more familiar setting than 'City of Ember', she still manages to paint a landscape unlike any we know.

If the author had stayed with that and limited herself to showing us her vision of a post-apocalyptic world then I would have been disappointed. As it is she gives us a whole new story. What would happen if a village of 300 mostly good people find themselves faced with the challenge of taking care of 400 starving refugees without the skills and resources to fend for themselves? Tensions would build as resources dwindle and us/them divisions would be sure to arise. Is this a small-scale version of the same conflicts that brought about the global cataclysm of the misty past? It's a good story and the reader might just finish it a little wiser.

4 out of 5 stars

A Great Sequal June 3, 2004
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

I bought this just because I wanted to know why they were underground in the first place. And after finishing the book I was quite pleased. I actulately think it was better than the first one. I was afraid at first that it would just be all "ahh we just sunburned" about the emberties getting adjusted to the new world.
And if you think the last one ended it did not. Where are the 400 members of Ember going to go? How are they going to find food? How can they live in a world that's already been destroyed? And they can't just go to a nearby city and live there, could they? This new book answers all those questions and is amazingly believable without any mistakes (meaning in the plot, not gramatically) and it had new characters that are believable and have personaity of their own. And many people can relate to the new characters.
It is also written very well. Much more so than the City of Ember. And she had more symbolism that wasn't as corney as painting the sky blue when the sky really was blue (no offense Jeanne if you're reading this).
So if you liked the first book you should definately go read this one. And we learned why the Emberties lived underground and what the Disastor was. And it has this one new cool thing (a picture of it on the back cover) but I wont tell you any more.

4 out of 5 stars

A whole new world September 1, 2006
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

The second book of Ember
Though Ember is no more
The citizens who made the trip
Now have new things in store

They find a whole new world out there
With things they've never seen
Like sky and sun and other stuff
They'd not known where they'd been

The people of the town of Sparks
Survived the big disaster
Now faced with hundreds more to feed
Their stocks will run out faster

The Ember folk cannot adapt
There's no plumbing or power
No medicine or food in cans
It's not their finest hour

In six months they'll be on their own
It causes an uproar
People who forget the past
Are condemned evermore

Feuding, fighting, dirty tricks
A multitude of sins
Until they learn that in a war
Nobody ever wins

Amanda Richards, August 31, 2006

3 out of 5 stars

Disappointing but not bad June 3, 2004
12 out of 16 found this review helpful

The book begins with the people of the City of Ember coming up and out into the real world, a world they never knew existed. Everything is new and scary even the wind and the sky. Soon they encounter the people of Sparks, and are invited to stay for a short six months to learn the skills they will need to go out into the world and create their own place. The story goes on to explore the difficulties adjusting to new people in a new environment.

The City of Ember was one of the better books I have read in the last few years. It had a setting the was unique, and that is saying a lot today. That being said I expected a lot from the sequel. I have to say I was disappointed. While the writing style itself is good and the plot still fast moving, the story itself is just not as interesting.

The problem with this story is that it has been done. I felt like I could be reading any story about any post apocalyptic world and the hardships that world creates. I expected better from an author whose first book was so amazingly creative and thought provoking. All in all it wasn't bad, but I wanted more.

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