The Young World (The Young World Trilogy #1) by Chris Weitz

After a mysterious Sickness wipes out the rest of the population, the young survivors assemble into tightly run tribes. Jefferson, the reluctant leader of the Washington Square tribe, and Donna, the girl he's secretly in love with, have carved out a precarious existence among the chaos. But when another tribe member discovers a clue that may hold the cure to the Sickness, five teens set out on a life-altering road trip to save humankind.
The tribe exchanges gunfire with enemy gangs, escapes cults and militias, braves the wilds of the subway and Central Park...and discovers truths they could never have imagined.

First of all, the fact that the author is a director really had me worried. 
Most books I've read that are written by directors are TOTAL nightmare novels.

I'm glad to say that this is the exception (Although it did dance a very fine line for me.) 
I found the characters overall extremely realistic and likeable, I found them each to be individual and I appreciated the multiple POV standpoint (Which really advantages the novel.) I even found myself getting attached to characters that died *no spoilers* 

I loved the plot. The plot was great. It had a straightforward objective, and the world kept building and building on top of itself. I loved the different societies they encountered and how likely those societies would be, should a pandemic like this one occur. 

Brainbox was my favorite character. I identified with him as a loner, and as someone often misunderstood. 

The ending brought a smile to my face, Chris pulled that one right over my eyes. I didn't see it coming in the slightest. 

I highly recommend this novel to anyone looking for a refreshing dystopian read.
Four stars.

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About the Author:

Chris Weitz is an Oscar-nominated writer and director. His films include The Twilight Saga: New Moon, A Better Life, About a Boy, The Golden Compass,   and  American Pie.  The Young World  is his first novel. 

You can find him here:

Chapter by Chapter #1 - TFIOS

The Fault in Our Stars and I have had this appointment long coming.
The purpose of this meme, is to give insight to the readers about the process of how we figure out what we are going to say about a particular novel. You take the book, and type and share your thought on that chapter, and by the end the blog readers can see your thought process grow and change a long the way! The thought can be as small as a sentence or as long as you like. Linky at the bottom!

Chapter 1: How come I never knew it was in female POV? for whatever odd reason I assumed it was from Augustus's POV.

Chapter 5: I had to stop and express something. I resonate DEEPLY with Hazel. At one point Hazel gets a shoulder pain because her heart is working too hard. I have that problem too, You see, I have Cystic Fibrosis which is technically a terminal diagnosis (It kills you eventually, the question is, how long can advancing science make you live.) and I resonate with her so deeply. I know what it feels to wake up like a zombie in the hospital, I know what its like to shuffle around after your lungs have been cleaned out. I know what it's like to revel in good nurses who give you extra ice chips and try their best to give you a few hours uninterrupted sleep. I know what it's like to be a human dartboard when it comes to starting IV's and drawing blood. I know what it is to stare at hospital ceiling tiles and I know what its like to watch ancient reruns on crappy hospital televisions. I know what it's like to feel like you have a leg inside the grave while HELLO you're still alive!

I just know.
I know her feelings...

and finally, I've found a character whom I completely 100% identify with. Her parents at one point call her " A brilliant young reader with a side interest in horrible television shows." and that is ME to a T.

In love with reading, writing, blogging, being human and yet, I am perpetually dying at a faster rate than is considered normal.

How beautiful a thing is it that I have found a book that features someone so much like me?
Is this what other bloggers rave about in other books? Has it been, that I've just come across the perfect novel to give me the epiphany that I'm not missing some piece of my heart? I've always wondered why I never quite connected with characters...is maybe this why? That this whole time i've been reviewing books through the lenses of death?

Wow..I've never experienced such a connection with a character.

I marvel at this book. At chapter five it has ensnared my heart. I can tell right now; I will be utterly destroyed by this novel.