2788. Only the
handicapped live on Earth. While everyone else portals between worlds,
18-year-old Jarra is among the one in a thousand people born with an
immune system that cannot survive on other planets. Sent to Earth at
birth to save her life, she has been abandoned by her parents. She can’t
travel to other worlds, but she can watch their vids, and she knows all
the jokes they make. She’s an ‘ape’, a ‘throwback’, but this is one ape
girl who won’t give in.
Jarra invents a fake background for herself – as a normal child of Military parents – and joins a class of norms that is on Earth to excavate the ruins of the old cities. When an ancient skyscraper collapses, burying another research team, Jarra’s role in their rescue puts her in the spotlight. No hiding at back of class now. To make life more complicated, she finds herself falling in love with one of her classmates – a norm from another planet. Somehow, she has to keep the deception going.
A freak solar storm strikes the atmosphere, and the class is ordered to portal off-world for safety – no problem for a real child of military parents, but fatal for Jarra. The storm is so bad that the crews of the orbiting solar arrays have to escape to planet below: the first landing from space in 600 years. And one is on collision course with their shelter.
Jarra invents a fake background for herself – as a normal child of Military parents – and joins a class of norms that is on Earth to excavate the ruins of the old cities. When an ancient skyscraper collapses, burying another research team, Jarra’s role in their rescue puts her in the spotlight. No hiding at back of class now. To make life more complicated, she finds herself falling in love with one of her classmates – a norm from another planet. Somehow, she has to keep the deception going.
A freak solar storm strikes the atmosphere, and the class is ordered to portal off-world for safety – no problem for a real child of military parents, but fatal for Jarra. The storm is so bad that the crews of the orbiting solar arrays have to escape to planet below: the first landing from space in 600 years. And one is on collision course with their shelter.
My Review of Earth Girl (5/5 stars):
This book
just blew me away. Captivating, original and compelling, Earth Girl is an
intelligent science fiction novel full of emotion and drama. I absolutely loved
this book. I was instantly drawn into Jarra’s world, a futuristic and abandoned
Earth inhabited only by those whose immune system cannot survive off world. Deemed
an ape, Jarra embarks on a journey to prove a point to the exos (derogatory
word for off planet inhabitants), that slowly becomes a journey of
self-discovery, acceptance and equality in a seemingly unequal world.
The narrative
was so fluid and the prose so realistic, as I was instantly transported into
Jarra’s world, sharing in the excitement of the digs, sharing in her confusion
and her infectious passion for history. Jarra’s narrative was so personal as if
she was talking directly to the reader, creating an instant emotional
attachment and strong bond. Despite the futuristic setting, technological and
scientific advancements and the expansion of humanity to other worlds, the
world still seemed realistic and relatable. The teenagers within the novel
seemed like teenagers from our times, interested in fashion, music, television,
celebrities, their appearance etc.
The story
is full of on the edge of your seat, nail biting drama and it is also full of
emotion. The story shocked and surprised me. I found myself getting all
teary-eyed during the more emotive scenes in the novel. The story deals with
loss, love and acceptance but it is also a kind of bildungsroman novel, where
Jarra grows as a character as the story progresses. She comes to learn that
things aren’t always as they seem, people are different than what she previously
thought and she is much more than just an orphaned earth girl. Tension and
problems arise when Jarra beings to realise that the exos are just human and
not as bad as she previously thought resulting in her plan backfiring slightly
and causing her to re-think her plan to shame and humiliate those around her.
The
protagonist, Jarra was a wonderfully passionate character full of enthusiasm,
confidence and determination. Intelligent and eager to learn, I loved her
character despite being a little frustrated by her actions at times. Her
passion for knowledge and history was inspirational as was her goals for life
despite her ‘handicap’. She has to deal with so much both physical and
emotional and I just loved her determination to carry on despite the obstacles
that were thrown in her way. Her confidence and cockiness sometimes made her
come across as a little arrogant and full of herself but I believe its just
evidence of her passion, enthusiasm and thirst for knowledge. She was a
character that I could easily relate with and empathise with mainly because of
her interest in history and her passion for the past was instantly infectious;
I wanted to be her friend, listen to her historical facts and work with her on
an ancient dig site.
My
favourite part of the whole story was the archaeological and historical aspects
of the novel. I
absolutely adored the archaeology within the novel and found them the most
interesting part by far. The uncovering of the past and the discovery of long
forgotten buildings and items was so exciting and I loved seeing the work that
went into unearthing such things as if they were rich treasures and gems. The rich detail was amazing and I loved hearing all of the things that went
into exposing such hidden treasures. The dig site of New York city seemed
almost otherworldly and magical as the team work in the ruined streets of the
city, in the rubble of a world long forgotten, slowly crumbling to dust. I just
loved the setting. The mixture of the past and the future mixed together was
just fascinating and made the story jump out of the page, making a more
realistic and relatable world.
The
expansion of humanity throughout the galaxy and the foundation of numerous new
planets was a fascinating aspect of the novel that I found inspiring. The idea of
portals was so brilliant and exciting, with individuals being able to portal
from place to place, planet to planet within seconds. I also loved the fact
that Earth is described as uninhabitable because of its solar storms and
extreme weather. I found this aspect amusing seeing as Earth is the mother
planet of all the new colonised planets and it’s deemed as much of an ape as
its inhabitants, with its history being deemed unimportant by some.
There is
just one small thing that threw me off balance a bit and left me a little
confused by what was happening. I can’t really say what happened without
ruining most of the story but the change in the story and Jarra’s character just
didn’t sit well with me and left me quite bewildered. As I slowly came to the
realisation of what was going on I became aware of how much of a brilliant plot
device it was despite it playing around with the reader a little. As readers we
are left in the dark, in a similar situation to the other characters. I thought
the whole plot device was evidence of great characterisation and a surprising,
intriguing narrative.
I loved
this book. It was so exciting; full of twists and turns that never failed to
surprise me, interesting characters full of depth and realism and a plot that
kept me turning each page in anticipation. The story was completely compelling
and I loved the whole journey and experience and I can’t wait for the next
book.
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