LS 5603.21/Spring 2010
S. Vardell
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
PLOT SUMMARY:
New York native Elizabeth, aka "Daisy", visits her unknown maternal English Aunt and cousins unaware of the internal and external consequences she will face. CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
Meg Rosoff turns Daisy's life upside down from the moment she steps off a plane in London. She is greeted by cousin Edmond, an under aged driver, and is transported to an unfamiliar place without presence of reliable adult supervision. Daisy's cousins, whom she has never met, welcome her into their dilapidated country home and lives. The authentic setting creates a believable reality for Osbert, Edmond, Isaac, Piper and Daisy. The fictional atmosphere becomes a place of peace and healing for Daisy only to be interrupted by the horrors of war. Ms. Rosoff's how i live now, is written with great depth and emotion. Each character is complex and believable. Adolescent challenges experienced by Daisy are possible and believable. Daisy's imposed controlled self torment becomes altered when her continued existence is at stake . Only a gifted writer can relate this many complex feelings with clear understanding. Ms. Rosoff leads the reader through the journey with her characters as they are changed forever by uncontrollable, yet possible, events. Above all the tale is a love story. Daisy's voyage permits her to feel love for others while discovering love for herself. This first novel is about love, tragedy, loss and redemption. how i live now is written with truth. The chronicle of Daisy's journey deals with mature subjects. Beautifully written words make the most uncomfortable moments of life readable. how i live now, targeted to young adults, is not condescending, it is compelling, and treats young readers with respect. Author Meg Rosoff recognizes the intensity of a young person's feelings, sentiments and passions. Daisy's first love is her reality and is not diminished by her "age". Through growth and perseverance Daisy finds the truth behind her facade.
AWARDS WON AND REVIEW EXCERPTS:
Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, 2004 Winner United Kingdom
Los Angeles Times Book Prize, 2004 Finalist Young Adult Fiction United States
Michael L. Printz Award, 2005 Winner United States
Quill Awards, 2005 Nominee Young Adult/Teen United States
Whitbread Children's Book Award, 2004 Shortlist United Kingdom
CCBC (Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices, 2005)
Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent to live with her cousins in England while her father and new stepmother move on with their lives in New York City. Almost immediately, Daisy’s aunt leaves for business, and terrorists from an unknown country invade England. With no adults around, Daisy and her cousins, Osbert, Edmond, Isaac, and Piper, have only a vague notion of what is happening. They live in a rural area far removed from the initial points of attack in the cities, and events are not close enough to penetrate their sheltered and self-involved lives.
Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, July 15, 2004 (Vol. 72, No. 14))
Manhattanite Daisy, 15, moves to London to stay with an aunt and cousins she's never met. Without preamble or fanfare, an unidentified enemy attacks and war ensues. Her aunt is abroad on a peace mission, meaning that Daisy and her three cousins, with whom she forges a remarkable relationship, must survive almost entirely on their own. This is a very relatable contemporary story, told in honest, raw first-person and filled with humor, love, pathos, and carnage. War, as it will, changes these young people irrevocably, not necessarily for the worse. They and readers know that no one will ever be the same.
CONNECTIONS:
Meg Rosoff Blog
Books by this author at BookBrowse:
The Bride's Farewell
What I Was
Just In Case
Meet Wild Boars
How I Live Now
Related Subjects from Children's Literature Comprehensive Database (CLCD)
- War Fiction.
- Cousins Fiction.
- Family life--England Fiction.
- Farm life--England Fiction.
- Eating disorders Fiction.
- England Fiction.
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