Marca de nacimiento
Caragh M. O´brien
Publicado: 2010 | 278 páginas
Novela Ciencia ficción Fantástico Juvenil

Los marcados con un código determinarán el futuro. La marcada por una cicatriz desentrañará el pasado. En un mundo futuro agostado por el sol inclemente, donde el agua es más valiosa que el oro, hay quienes viven dentro de las murallas del Enclave y quienes, como Gaia Stone, comadrona de dieciséis años, viven extramuros.Gaia siempre ha creído que su deber, como el de su madre, es entregar una pequeña cuota de bebés saludables a los residentes del Enclave a pesar de que, fuera del recinto, nadie vuelve a tener noticia de ellos.Sin embargo, cuando aquellos a quienes sirve tan escrupulosamente, encarcelan a sus padres, se cuestiona todas sus creencias.Gaia solo puede hacer dos cosas: entrar en el Enclave para rescatar a sus padres o morir intentándolo.

Fabulous feminist dystopian fiction. Just wonderful. There MUST be a sequel. I mean really. ( )

In a dystopian future, society is marked by the privileged that live inside the Enclave and those who live a life of poverty and no education outside. Following in her mother’s steps, sixteen-year-old Gaia Stone becomes a midwife and the best in her sector outside the wall. Her job wouldn’t be so bad if she didn’t have a quota of babies to give to the Enclave for “advancement.” Mother greed is supposed to be unnatural and disloyal to the Enclave; mothers should be happy their children will be given better opportunities, but something seems off about all of it. One night her parents are taken in for questioning. It stretches to three weeks and still no word from them. Meanwhile, Gaia's being questioned by the mysterious Sergeant Grey about a list or some secret code her parents made about the babies her mother helped bring into the world. Determined to get into the Enclave to save her parents, she smuggles herself in and her life drastically changes. What does the Enclave want with her parents, and what is in the mysterious ribbon with an embedded message? Gaia soon realizes it’s not so simple to rebel, especially against an elitist society that’s all about their exclusive gene pool.

I love strong heroines that stand up against authority! Gaia isn't your traditional perfect character with overwhelming beauty either. The scars of life are on her face quite literally. She goes through life with different forms of bravery, and doesn't even think so. She’s just doing what she has to do. There is also slight romance and it doesn’t impair her judgment. Also, I don't think I've ever used my dictionary as much as I did reading this book. I feel like I learned a volume of words I never even heard of before. It's always nice to learn something new.

If you love dystopia, then this is one of the best I’ve read recently. The only bad thing about this book is that the next one (Prized) doesn’t come out till the early part of November. It doesn’t leave off on a cliffhanger, but it certainly has you wanting to read more about Gaia and those she loves. Put it on your TBR list, because it’s excellent. ( )

I've read it a few times already. *smile!*

At only sixteen Gaia is following in her mothers footsteps as a midwife. There are parts of her job that are secret, such as the freckles and the tea, then there are parts of the job that are necessary, such as the advanced babies that are handed over to the Enclave to which all serve. Gaia has always blindly followed the rules of her society, never once questioning her part. That is until the night she delivers her first baby unassisted, the same night her parents are taken from her.

Inside the walls of the Enclave people live in luxury, a stark contrast to those living outside like Gaia. Only those born within the walls, or those advanced, are permitted among the privileged and for an outsider to enter is suicide. Gaia however is determined to enter the walls to save her parents, but what she finds under the surface of this idealistic society is dark and dangerous and try as she might she cannot escape without leaving someone she loves behind.

Birthmarked is a terrifying look into a future where the individual is insignificant when compared to the needs of society, where even babies are traded for resources and where among the elite love is only allowed to those genetically compatible. An outsider, a girl marked as undesirable, will create chaos in a dystopian society, waking people from their complacencies and getting them thinking about just what it means to serve a 'greater good'. Very excited to discover this is just the first in a series, with a lot more adventure to come. ( )