Scythe by Neal Shusterman Book Review

 

Written By: Neal Shusterman

Published By: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers in 2017

ISBN: 978-1442472433

Plot Summary: The year is 2042 and artificial intelligence has become alive and thinks for itself and has created a network called the Thunderhead. As it knows all, it has figured out how to keep humans alive indefinitely. The problems of how to feed and shelter everyone is still an issue so a job is created called being a Scythe. They are required to kill a certain number of people to balance the scales. Two teenagers are training to be a Scythe and their names are Citra and Rowan. They are supposed to both be trained and then one is chosen while the other goes back to their normal life. Other Scythes decide though that whoever wins has to kill the other as their first kill. Their trainer pretends to kill himself so they are sent to train under other scythes. Citra finds out that their original trainer is still alive and creates a plan to make everything work out for her and Rowan. At the final training, they are both required to kill one of their family members and Citra uses her ring to grant Rowan immunity from death. Rowan escapes with Faraday the original trainer while stories of a vigilante break out about someone who is killing the evil Scythes. 

Critical Analysis: This book has been one of my favorites so far that I have read. It is a thoroughly engrossing tale that takes you into many different avenues of thought as you look at what artificial intelligence means and how it could be used for both positive and negative things in society. The story includes the morals of sacrifice and also how the value of compassion can supercede many ills when it comes to society and relationships. The most interesting symbol that the author creates is the gleaning journals where everyone can read what the Scythes are things, what the motivations are, and how their job is necessary but also very difficult to reconcile with the human condition. The author spins a tale that will leave you on the edge of your seat but also gives you the time to pause and ask the hard questions that we continue to wrestle with in the present day. 

Reviews: Two teens train to be society-sanctioned killers in an otherwise immortal world. On post-mortal Earth, humans live long (if not particularly passionate) lives without fear of disease, aging, or accidents. Operating independently of the governing AI (called the Thunderhead since it evolved from the cloud), scythes rely on 10 commandments, quotas, and their own moral codes to glean the population. After challenging Hon. Scythe Faraday, 16-year-olds Rowan Damisch and Citra Terranova reluctantly become his apprentices. Subjected to killcraft training, exposed to numerous executions, and discouraged from becoming allies or lovers, the two find themselves engaged in a fatal competition but equally determined to fight corruption and cruelty. The vivid and often violent action unfolds slowly, anchored in complex worldbuilding and propelled by political machinations and existential musings. Scythes’ journal entries accompany Rowan’s and Citra’s dual and dueling narratives, revealing both personal struggles and societal problems. The futuristic post–2042 MidMerican world is both dystopia and utopia, free of fear, unexpected death, and blatant racism—multiracial main characters discuss their diverse ethnic percentages rather than purity—but also lacking creativity, emotion, and purpose. Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions.

A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning. (Science fiction. 14 & up)

Connections: Students can research artificial intelligence and how it is currently impacting our society as well as take the time to journal and ponder what are some things that artificial intelligence could do for us in the future.