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Overview
This fast-paced action novel is set in a future where the world has been almost destroyed. Like the award-winning novel Freak the Mighty, this is Philbrick at his very best.It's the story of an epileptic teenager nicknamed Spaz, who begins the heroic fight to bring human intelligence back to the planet. In a world where most people are plugged into brain-drain entertainment systems, Spaz is the rare human being who can see life as it really is. When he meets an old man called Ryter, he begins to learn about Earth and its past. With Ryter as his companion, Spaz sets off an unlikely quest to save his dying sister -- and in the process, perhaps the world.
Synopsis
It's the story of an epileptic teenager nicknamed Spaz, who begins the heroic fight to bring human intelligence back to the planet. In a world where most people are plugged into brain-drain entertainment systems, Spaz is the rare human being who can see life as it really is. When he meets an old man called Ryter, he begins to learn about Earth and its past. With Ryter as his companion, Spaz sets off an unlikely quest to save his dying sister -- and in the process, perhaps the world.
Publishers Weekly
"Philbrick's latest misfit protagonist embarks on an adventure in a fantastic and often frightening alternative world," said PW. "The creation of a futuristic dialect, combined with striking descriptions of a postmodern civilization, will convincingly transport readers." Ages 10-14. (Mar.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
"Philbrick's latest misfit protagonist embarks on an adventure in a fantastic and often frightening alternative world," said PW. "The creation of a futuristic dialect, combined with striking descriptions of a postmodern civilization, will convincingly transport readers." Ages 10-14. (Mar.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.KLIATT
To quote KLIATT's November 2000 review of the hardcover edition: The award-winning author of Freak the Mighty and other books for YAs turns to SF here, in an imaginative and disturbing story about a bleak, dangerous future world ("the Urb") and a teenage boy who must make his way through it to reach his mortally ill adoptive sister. The boy is called Spaz, because he has epilepsy. This prevents him from using the drug-like mindprobes that are turning the others in the Urb into zombies. As a result, Spaz still has his memory, unlike the others; and an old man known as Ryter (one of the few people left who still remembers and values books) accompanies him on his quest and teaches him to value it. As they fearfully cross from one gang-ruled territory to another, they are joined first by a small boy and then by a "proov," a girl who lives in Eden, a beautiful land forbidden to the residents of the Urb. She is able to help Spaz's sister, but in the end Spaz and Ryter must return to the horrors of the Urb. When Ryter is killed by a mob, Spaz realizes that he must tell his story for posterity and become "the last book in the universe" of the title. This is an expansion of a short story Philbrick wrote for a collection called Tomorrowland, told in slang that will remind some of A Clockwork Orange; e.g., "gummy" for old person, "chox" for chocolate bar, "cancel" for kill. The terms are clearly explained, however, and most YAs, particularly those who enjoy SF, will find it an easy, fast read. Spaz's adventures and moral dilemmas in a strange and scary setting, vividly told from his viewpoint, make this an absorbing story with some depth to it. A provocative cover featuring aboy's figure covered with words against the background of a post-apocalyptic landscape will catch readers' attention. This would be an interesting companion to Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, and a good choice for discussion in English classes. An ALA Best Book for YAs. KLIATT Codes: JS*—Exceptional book, recommended for junior and senior high school students. 2000, Scholastic, 224p.,— Paula Rohrlick