The Legend of the Last Library. Frank L. Cole. 2024. 288 pages. [Source: Library] [MG dystopia; MG post-apocalyptic; MG fiction] [3 stars]
First sentence: I never saw the squash coming. One moment I was squatting on the grime-covered floor trying to pry up a section of tile, and the next I was laid out on my back, covered in the goop of a rotten vegetable.
Premise/plot: Juni Knox is part-time student, part-time plifter. She salvages remnants and scraps of paper from a society long gone. There is some classing of "haves" and "have nots" but mainly it's a society with a lot of have nots. If your house has electricity a couple of hours a day, most days of the week, well, you've got it good. The basic premise is that Juni lives in a futuristic society that is paperless and learning how to read is the lowest of priorities....however, rumors are that there is a long lost "last" library where books--actual books printed on actual paper--abound. But there are villainy-villains who would do anything to stop the library from being found.
Juni (and friends) are on the hunt for the last library.
My thoughts: I am SO conflicted. On the one hand, the premise is interesting. On the other hand, Juni was annoying as a heroine because for plot purposes she almost has to be pushing the limits of being too stupid to survive. Every time there was a decision to be made, Juni would make the stupidest decision possible, almost. But if she made great decisions, the book would probably be 88 pages instead of 288 pages. The world building, in my opinion, was a bit flimsy. Flimsy in the if you go with the flow and stay in the moment, it worked for the most part....however....the more time you put into thinking about it and letting implications grow...the less it works. All that being said, and I know it might sound negative, the book did keep me reading. I liked some elements of this one very much. It was very much a book that loved to talk about books and reading.
© 2024 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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