I was really wowed by the concept of this book, and also a bit let down that it wasn't better explored. The backdrop of this book is the slowing of the earth's rotation and the effects stemming therefrom. But the book is really more about the coming of age, of the narrator, Julia. As the narrator is 11 years old, we get an 11 year old's perspective about the "slowing" and its impact, which renders that storyline rather basic, and unfulfilling. I did enjoy this book, but ultimately it had the potential to be so much more.

Most of what I can say about the Age of Miracles has been said more eloquently in other reviews, but I'll say this anyway. Beautifully and simply written, terrifying in how realistically the events unfold and unbelievably heartfelt. At times when I stopped reading, worlds would overlap and I would momentarily believe the Earth had really slowed in its rotation. I've read a lot of good books this year, but I have a feeling this one will stay with me a long while. I have no recommendations because there are no other books like this one that I know of.

The Age of Miracles is told from the perspective of a girl named Julia, who reflects back on the time when she was 11 years old. She relates the details of her life and the events that took place back then, focusing primarily on a phenomenon known as "The Slowing," when the Earth began to rotate more slowly on a continuous basis. Minutes and hours continued to be added to each day, and it affected daily life on every level. Society became separated between the "real-timers" who woke and slept to the Earth's natural rhythms and who believed that their bodies would adjust just as the Earth had; and the "clock-timers" who still lived by the 24-hour clock and woke and slept no matter whether the sun or moon was shining. The "real-timers" became ostracized by the "clock-timers," who felt threatened by them. The "real-timers" eventually established communities of like-minded folks, so there was a complete segregation of society. As the days stretched longer and longer, it also had an impact on the crops which could no longer be sustained because of the lengthy periods of darkness. People began to stock-pile and hoard canned food and other non-perishables in the event of a global famine. Some forms of wildlife begin to die off. The change in gravitational pull wreaked havoc on airplanes, the tides, and just about anything in motion. As people faced what they feared was the beginning of the end, divorce rates and suicides sky-rocketed. For the rest that remained, they battled to fight depression and the many other symptoms that plagued them as a result of the change in gravity. Walker spins an eerily believable tale of what would happen if The Slowing ever did take place. Her style seems more literary than dystopian to me. Although there are many long narratives, Walker's beautiful prose still held my interest. Here is just one example: "And it seems to me now that the slowing triggered certain other changes too, less visible at first but deeper. It disrupted certain subtler trajectories: the tracks of friendships, for example, the paths toward and away from love. But who am I to say that the course of my childhood was not already set long before the slowing? Perhaps my adolescence was only an average adolescence, the stinging a quite unremarkable stinging. There is such a thing as coincidence: the alignment of two or more seemingly related events with no causal connection. Maybe everything that happened to me and to my family had nothing at all to do with the slowing. It's possible, I guess. But I doubt it. I doubt it very much." Narrator Emily Janice Card is new-to-me, and I thought that her voice was perfectly suited for young Julia. Her tone has an ethereal, dream-like quality, which I really enjoyed. This is Walker's debut novel, and I look forward to reading more from her! MY RATING: 4 stars!! It was really good, and you should put it on your "To Be Read" list.

Story Description: Doubleday Canada|June 26, 2012|Hardcover|ISBN: 978-0-385-67663-2 From a stunning new literary voice comes a brilliant debut novel that created an international auction frenzy, with sales in twenty-seven countries to date, about a young girl growing up in extraordinary times. On a seemingly ordinary Saturday morning, Julia and her family wake to discover, along with the rest of the world, that the rotation of the earth has suddenly begun to slow. Set against this threat to normal life, The Age of Miracles maps the effects of catastrophes big and small on the lives of ordinary people, and in particular, on a young girl. Extraordinary for its original concept, unforgettable characters, and the grace, elegance and beauty of Karen Thompson Walker’s prose, The Age of Miracles is a mesmerizing story of family turmoil, young love, and coming-of-age set against an upending of life as we know it. My Review: Eleven-year-old, Julia is learning to cope with the many changes that accompany growing up. Her very best friend, Hanna seems to have deserted her, her parents aren’t getting along all that well, she sees her father with another woman in the other woman’s home while he is supposed to be at work, and the boy she has a crush on, Seth Moreno, acknowledges her one day and totally ignores her the next. Then Julia is forced to deal with a real life, scary situation. On a Saturday morning, Julia and her parents, along with the rest of the world, learn that the earth’s rotation is slowing down which means the length of each day is getting longer and longer and no one seems to know why. Some scientists think they have it all figured out while other scientists think they’re wrong. Regardless, this is real, it is happening, and the days are getting longer and longer causing all sorts of problems. This lengthening of days goes on for so long that it now takes multiple twenty-four hour periods to see the sun. The earth’s magnetic field has shifted and some people are getting sick, folks cannot go outside during the lengthy hours of sunlight as the sun is burning their skin through their clothing. Families, governments, stores, and schools all try to adapt the best way they can. Kids are going to school at night, sometimes during the day, people are stock-piling food, water, and batteries, thinking the end of the world is coming, while others are moving their families to live in communes. The story is narrated by eleven-year-old, Julia so really more of the story is about coming-of-age but also part sci-fi and part young adult fiction. However, as a full grown adult I did thoroughly enjoy the book. It is beautifully written and I will be recommending it to my friends.

When you think of the end of the world, you expect it to come all at once, for it to be fast and absolute pandamonieum. You expect people to panic. But in Karen Thomas Walker's version of the end of the world things happen much differently. The earth begins to turn more slowly. A subtle shift. One that humanity definitely wouldn't notice right away. The changes would come, but they would come gradually. Because of this, the Age of Miracles feels like a more realistic, evenly paced account and to me, that's what really set it apart for other apocalyptic novels. I loved that it wasn't a technical analysis of the end of the world. The reader wasn't bogged down with the scientific details of what was going on. Most of which we would barely undersand anyway (or at least, I would barely understand). Told from the perspective of a young girl the changes were pointed out slowly, gradually. Small things that may not have seemed like a big deal on their own, but added together, one at a time, really drove home the desperation of the situation. Finally, it's really easy to get lost in this story. I was shocked by how the pages flew by. It was an easy to read novel and Karen Thompson Walker has a superb narrative style. It's a depressing story (the world is ending after all) but it's also an enchanting one. Final recommendation: A highly recommended, beautiful novel. Fans of literary fiction, speculative fiction and even YA readers will love this book. This and other reviews at Hooked on Books (http://christashookedonbooks.blogspot.com)

The moment I read People's review of this book in last weeks issue, I was intrigued enough to rush out to buy my very own copy. This book was so beautifully done. Written from the perspective of 11 year old Julia, we get a taste of what our world would be like if something like the Slowing were to really transpire. What I loved about this book was the premise, that the world begins to rotate ever more slowly, lengthening our days and nights. With December 12th on the horizon, we're far from short of theories and stories about how it will go down, but they all have something in common: the world goes out with a bang. In this novel, it's a gradual and slow decay. It's a perspective that we've never considered. Some may argue that this book is slow to start or sluggishly paced throughout but I have to disagree. Thompson writes with such simplicity, but it's so beautifully wrought that you feel everything. This is not a novel of big twists and turns but everything is thought out and timed so perfectly that you don't need any smoke and mirrors. It's terrifying in its reality because every plot point that Thompson introduces rings true in a sense that were this Slowing really to happen, it feels that humans would react to it exactly as she has written. You have the government ordering American's to continue to follow "clock time", that is, the 24 hour day, even though the days begin to stretch towards 50 hours. Children go to school under the cover of night because their clocks read noon, and families shutter their windows from the bright sun because it's bedtime. And then you have the radicals that shun clock time and decide to live in real time, staying awake for as long as the sun shines, which, near the end of the book, can be as long as 30 hours. There are other, more drastic changes that occur as the Slowing persists, but it's something you need to see/read for yourself. I sometimes found myself putting this book down and being momentarily stunned upon realization that we were not in this dilemma, I was so engrossed. Definitely not one to miss.

I'm normally not a big fan of dystopian/ apocalyptic fiction, but for some reason, this book intrigued me, so I decided to give it a try. I'm very glad I did. The story revolves around the fact that on a seemingly normal day in a California suburb, 11 year old Julia and her parents wake up one morning to discover, along with the rest of the world, that the rotation of the earth has begun to slow. The days and nights gradually get longer, gravity is affected and everything is thrown into disarray. At the same time, while the world is going haywire, Julia is dealing with all of the normal issues many preteens go through, such as first love, loss of friends, bullying and parental problems. I think what really appealed to me in this book was the way the author brought Julia to life. There is a dichotomy in her life that is never resolved. As the world is gradually crumbling around her, she continues to develop as a normal preteen. Equally realistic is the way many of the characters try to cling to the rituals of everyday life despite what is happening, like Julia continuing to go to school and planning to go to college and her going to her piano lessons. Also, upon reading reviews of this book, I was impressed at the amount of research the author did to make sure that the scientific facts in the book were accurate. I also found some similarities between Julia in this book and Judith in The Land of Decoration by Grace McCleen. Both are coming of age stories narrated by a child character and both were very well written novels. I would also recommend it for anyone who loved Room by Emma Donoghue which is also told from a child's perspective. I highly recommend that you read this book.

This is a wonderfully written book with a different take on the end of the world. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and can't imagine anyone I wouldn't recommend this too. The ending is a bit sad but it also makes you consider all the things you want to do in life and that you should do them while you still can.

Eleven-year-old Julia is dealing with the trials and turmoil that comes with being an adolescent girl when life takes an extraordinary turn. One Saturday morning, Julia and her family along with the rest of the world awake to discover that the rotation of the earth has begun to slow. At first, they don't think much of i, but as time goes on the days and nights become longer and the world begins to feel the disastrous effects. As the light begins to last for days then weeks at a time, the birds and plants to begin to die. People take ill from what is only known as the sickness. Neighbours become divided between those who go by the clock and those who go by real time and soon turn against each other. But life goes on and Julia must continue to navigate middle school, friendships and her first love as she adjusts to the uncertainty of the new normal. The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker is an extraordinary debut novel set apart by its original concept and beautiful writing. It examines the tenderness and intricacies of life set in a time of catastrophe. The book shows that it is during the upheavals that we really see the beauty and simplicity of it all. This book has been given quite a few labels since it was released, two of the biggest being YA and Speculative Fiction. What I found most beautiful about this book was the way it transcends labels and genres. As I read the book I wondered if I was reading a coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of a dystopian future or was I reading a dystopian novel through the eyes of a young girl. The answer is both. Both themes are connected in ways I haven't seen in a novel and they create a beautiful story that I feel can't be labelled as one genre. So don't let those things scare you off if you don't typically read those kinds of books. The concept behind this book is such an incredible one - the rotation of the earth begins to slow. It's not an immediate disaster, it doesn't result in immediate lawlessness. The characters have the time to wrap their heads around what is going on and adjust as best as they can. It really takes the reader inside the story as you become totally convinced that this could actually happen. I love that Karen Thompson Walker chose an eleven year old girl to be the protagonist of this story. Children have such a different view than adults and if it had been through the eyes of an adult, I think it would have had a lot more anxiety and worry to it. But by having the protagonist tell the story, looking back at the year she was eleven years old when it all began, we're able to see it through someone who is able to view it with wonder, who finds the politics of the middle school bus stop just as important as the rotation of the earth. This is the first book I have read this year that I have given five stars to. The writing is beautiful and captivates the reader through the entire book. And it's one of the most unique stories I've read in a while. I'm in awe of the fact that this is a debut novel and I look forward to what is next for Karen Thompson Walker. I received this book courtesy of Random House of Canada. The opinions expressed above are purely my own.

The Good Stuff •My god her writing is truly beautiful I feel inadequate even in trying to write this review •Unique story •Characters oh so very real, these are the kind of people you interact with everyday •Author has a true talent for making you feel you are part of the story. You can almost feel the landscape and when you stop reading you actually feel disjointed with reality (yes at times that is not a good thing as it is quite dark and sad) •This would be a fabulous book for class discussions, book clubs and twitter chats - so many things you could discuss •I finished it a couple of hours ago and it is still haunting me •Powerful and intense •Found myself reading passages over and over as I was mesmorized by the prose •Story really compares growing up and the end of the world (really at that age didn't it feel like the end of the world at times) •Really understands preteen feelings and experiences (especially those who haven't found their place) The Not So Good Stuff •Not really a feel good story and quite depressing at times - felt a little down while reading •Very slow (not really a bad thing but just want to warn you) & I won't lie would have liked a little more story and explanations less internal monologue (sorry personal preference) •The science of it all bothered me at times, tried to get over (protagonist is young, so could be believable) it but it still bugged me (don't let that stop you from reading because goddamn this women can write) Favorite Quotes/Passages "What I understood so far about this life was that there were the bullies and the bullied, the hunters and the hunted, the strong and the stronger and the weak, and so far I'd never fallen into any group - I was one of the rest, a quiet girl with an average face, one in the harmless and unharmed crowd. But it seemed all at once that this balance had shifted. With so many kids missing from the bus stop, all the hierarchies were changing." "We took more risks. Desires were less checked. Tempation was harder to resist. Some of us made decisions we might not otherwise have made." "But I guess it never is what you worry over that comes to pass in the end. The real catastrophes are always different - unimagined, unprepared for, unknown." "We dipped our fingers in the wet cement, and we wrote the truest, simplest things we knew - our names, the date and these words: We were here." Who Should/Shouldn't Read •Not for those who need fast paced action •I truly think fans of Margaret Atwood will be impressed •Perfect for book clubs and class discussions 4.25 Dewey's I received this from Random House in exchange for an honest review