Book: The Selection by Kiera Cass (The Selection #1)
Published: April 24th 2012 by HarperTeen
My rating: 4/5 Stars
Genre: YA Dystopian Romance
Goodreads Summary:
"For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself--and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined"
Why I feel it is similar:
-It is a dystopian YA in a setting that was once the US
-The people are divided into different groups (known as castes in this series) based on wealth
-The people are divided into different groups (known as castes in this series) based on wealth
-Each cast has a different job they are in charge of, for example: America, out leading lady, is a 5. They are the artists.
-There is a group of young women drawn at random to represent different areas in the country
-Their competition is broadcast live for the country to watch
How it is different:
-They are not physically fighting, so nobody dies
-They are competing to be the Princess, not for their lives (big difference)
-One based on romance, on has a romance story intertwined into the big story
-Entering the selection is an option, it's required in The Hunger Games
All in all they have similar basic qualities but the overall plot line is very different. These girls are not fighting for their lives, they are fighting for love. This is what really makes these too books different.
Things I enjoyed about this book:
-Maxon. I just want to hug this kid! Well, most of the time. He does have one line in here that makes me want to punch him. I don't remember exactly what it was, and I didn't mark it so I cant find it, but It was something along the lines of "Did you forget you are talking to a prince?" Like bro, she's your friend, she can talk to you how ever she wants without you throwing your title in her face. But for real guys, he is one of my (many) book boyfriends... in my mind hes totally my age :)
-Princesses, hello! I am that girl, who always dressed up as a princess for halloween when I was younger. I love The Princess Diaries (the movie, I surprisingly never read the books... I should fix that), I love Disney princess movies, I want to be a princess. In the girly dress up and live in a castle kid of way. I get there is more to the job, but thats not really what I'm in love with here. And I know I'm not alone... How many of y'all wanted to be a princess??
-It's different, I like it. While there are lot of TV shows like this, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, etc. there really aren't a lot of books with this basic plot line where the girls are competing for the love of one guy. I enjoyed the different topic. It was nice and refreshing, and really enjoyable!
-Unlike other dystopian books, the Selection is actually the main plot of the book. In other dystopian novels that is only the first book. Then the main character realizes how wrong the government and proceed to overthrow it. When I first started reading dystopian nobels, I would go into so many books, such as The Hunger Games, expecting them to be based on the initial thing that brought them in, such as the games in The Hunger Games, or becoming a part of their faction in Divergent. Those books turned out to be so much more, and as much as I loved them, I am really enjoying just reading about the selection. I'm sure somewhere down the way, either in The Elite (The Selection #2) or in The One (The Selection #3), there will be something more to the plot but for now I am really enjoying this :)
Things I didn't enjoy about the book:
-Aspen. I get that he is important to the story, and without him there would be nothing. But I am NOT a fan. All I can say, is what a d-bag. He makes America join enter The Selection for their future and then breaks up with her. So she does what she has to do to start getting over him. GO AWAY ASPEN. NOBODY LIKES YOU.
-Other than that I didn't really have anything I didn't like. It ended sooner than I thought it would, but thats because I was expecting to read about the entire Selection. But now the title The Elite makes a lot of sense. (For those of you who have not read the book yet, once the prince narrows down the 35 girls to 10 they are called the Elite). But as mentioned above, I am really enjoying reading about the Selection and not some crazy need to overthrow the government.
Did you read this book? What did you think about it??
I agree that it gets a tad annoying when every dystopian book revolves around a corrupt government. The idea is overused in movies and in books; people should just leave it alone.
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of on the fence with this one, because I like the cover and it doesn't sound like a heavy book that requires a lot of paying attention not to miss the little details... on the other hand, I've seen many bad things about it. I guess I'll have to read it myself to see.
And good job pointing out how it's different and a bit similar to The Hunger Games. This one seems to be about love, the other is strictly about survival and so on. Great review!
I would recommend this dystopian for you! I just finished the second book, The Elite. The government is mentioned a little more, but it's still not the main plot . I def think you should try this one out and see hoe you feel about it :)
ReplyDeleteThis book, to me, is the perfect summer book.. It's a quick easy read that just let's you escape into a whole other world. Before I started it I saw some reviews on goodreads and many of them were negative, but I've seen so many bloggers speak highly of this series so I had to find out for myself, and I'm glad I did!
ReplyDeleteI still have yet to read this one. I've heard many mixed reviews about it, so I think I'll find it in my library. Glad that you enjoyed it, Amber :)
ReplyDeleteIt was a good light dystopian, which I feel is really rare! It was definitely a futuristic world where things are run really differently, but this is a fluffy-ish version of a genre that is usually pretty dark so you really get to focus on the romance rather than the corruption! I would def recommend checking it out to see if you like it :)
DeleteThis is the second review I've read today that compared The Selection to The Bachelor which puts me on the fence over this.
ReplyDeleteI loved how you campared and contrasted it to The Hunger Games, it was a great addition to your wonderful review!
Haha thank you :) I don't usually watch shows like The Bachelor, I usually end up yelling at the TV trying to tell all the people how dumb they are. This does have some similarities, but it is definitely worth checking out! If you are hesitant to buy it but still want to see what all the talk is about, maybe try borrowing it from a friend or a library! I really think it is worth it!
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