Book Review: Restoring Harmony

Author: Joëlle Anthony
Releases: May 13th 2010 by Putnam Juvenile
Copy Provided by: Around the World Tours
Summary from GoodReads:

The year is 2041, and Molly McClure was only six when the Collapse of ’31 happened, ending life as the world’s population knew it. When she is forced to leave the comfort of her small B.C. island to travel down to Oregon, Molly discovers how hard the Collapse has been on the rest of the world. What starts out as a quick trip to the U.S. to convince her grandfather to return to Canada and be the island’s doctor, becomes a rescue mission. How much will she have to compromise to succeed in getting back home?

Restoring Harmony was a very enjoyable read. It was not the best dystopian I have ever read, but it was not the worst... it ranks in about the middle. I thought the premise had much promise; however, there seems to be a spark missing... that special element that would have transformed this novel from okay to wow! One aspect that bothered me as a reader was that Anthony describes this world as a very dangerous place for Molly, but all things considered, she gets from Canada to her grandparents surprisingly easy. Yes, there are a few bumps in the road, but everything continuously works out for the best. This continuous good luck made me question the believability of the novel. I wanted to submerse myself in the world that Anthony had created, but little things like this throughout held me back.

In regards to the characters, I typically enjoyed them. Molly was a unique character, and I loved reading about her fiddle playing. The characters of Spill and Grandpa added in made this novel more fun and adventurous. As for the plot, it was generally a slower paced novel. Anthony takes her time bringing the characters and plot to certain points. She then lets readers fully understand what is taking place at a specific moment before moving them on to the next. This was something I really appreciated as a reader. I did not feel as if Anthony was rushing the novel along, or skipping out on details that may have been important.

All in all, this was an enjoyable novel. The characters were fun and interesting. The plot was paced nicely for this premise. This is a lovely read for any dystopian fans, or readers wanting to ease into the dystopian genre.