Title: Matched
Author: Ally Condie
ISBN:9780142419779
Publisher: Speak, an imprint of Penguin Group
Copyright Date: 2010
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Romance
About the Author:
Ally Condie is the author of the MATCHED Trilogy, a #1 New York Times and international bestseller. MATCHED was chosen as one of YALSA’s 2011 Teens’ Top Ten and named as one of Publisher’s Weekly’s Best Children’s Books of 2010. The sequels, CROSSED and REACHED, were also critically acclaimed and received starred reviews, and all three books are available in 30+ languages.
Ally lives with her husband and four children outside of Salt Lake City, Utah. She loves reading, writing, running, and listening to her husband play guitar.
Condie, A. Ally Condie. Retrieved from http://allycondie.com/bio.
Curriculum Ties:
· Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.
· Analyze how an author draws on and transforms source material in a specific work.
· Analyze how an author’s choices concerning how to structure a text, order events within it (e.g., parallel plots), and manipulate time (e.g., pacing, flashbacks) create such effects as mystery, tension, or surprise.
Plot Summary:
In the future, the Society ensures that there is peace and happiness for all people living there, but with no freedom to choose. Cassia is a seventeen-year-old girl who has her future husband, her best friend Xander, is chosen for her. However, before seeing Xander’s picture, another match is also shown, another boy Cassia knows named Ky. Though she initially sticks with Xander, she begins to realize that she needs to know if Ky is the right match for her.This starts her search for the truth about which is right for her, and leads her on a journey which shows her the imperfections of the Society itself.
The story continues for another two books, Crossed and Reached, which continue to delve into Cassia’s relationships with Ky and Xander, and take Cassia to the edges of the Society. They also further investigate the problems with the Society and how to deal with them.
Critical Evaluation
The book is written in a first person point of view. As such, the plot is slowly unfolded from the main character’s, Cassia, understanding, which is very effective for maintaining the suspense and mystery of the story. Cassia continually works to find out what things mean, and her indecision and difficulties with doing so become a central part of the story line. The characters are well developed, with all the major characters being fleshed out with experiences and flashbacks, giving past experiences with both Xander and Ky, and also with her grandpa, which helps give his death some impact. As the book is the first in the series, the story focuses more on building the world than advancing a story, which works with the thought provoking tone that the book sets. The author’s bias in discussing the importance of writing and poetry is clear, and this is a central focus of the story.
Reader’s Annotation
Cassia is about to be matched, where the love of her life will be chosen for her. However, instead of just one person, two are shown to her, which launches her into a journey to find out who is her true match.
Booktalking Ideas:
- · Focus on the relationships between the characters and see how they change
- · Look at the use of writing and poetry and see how this affects the characters’ decisions.
Reading Level/Interest Age: 14-18
Challenge Issues:
- · Political Viewpoint: The book focuses on thinking for yourself, which could be perceived as an encouragement to defy authority.
Defense Collection:
- · All her life, Cassia has never had a choice. The Society dictates everything: when and how to play, where to work, where to live, what to eat and wear, when to die, and most importantly to Cassia as she turns 17, who to marry. When she is Matched with her best friend Xander, things couldn't be more perfect. But why did her neighbor Ky's face show up on her match disk as well? She's told it was an error, but something once noticed clamors for attention, and now Cassia can't look away. Ky has many secrets, but the most stunning to Cassia is something she never suspected still existed: creativity. As they fall in love, Cassia's eyes are opened to the truth of the Society, and she knows she can no longer blindly follow its dictates. But the Society isn't through with them, and things get much, much uglier. Condie's enthralling and twisty dystopian plot is well served by her intriguing characters and fine writing. While the ending is unresolved (the book is first in a trilogy), Cassia's metamorphosis is gripping and satisfying. Ages 14–up. (Nov.) --Staff (Reviewed October 4, 2010) (Publishers Weekly, vol 257, issue 39, p)
- · Grades 9-12 “Do not go gentle into that good night.” Cassia’s feelings of security disintegrate after her grandfather hands her a slip of paper just before his scheduled death at age 80. Not only does she now possess an illegal poem, but she also has a lingering interest in the boy who fleetingly appeared on her viewscreen, the one who wasn’t her match, the man she will eventually marry. What’s worse, she knows him—his name is Ky, and he is an orphan from the Outer Provinces. How could she love him as much as Xander, her match and best friend since childhood? The stunning clarity and attention to detail in Condie’s Big Brother–like world is a feat. Some readers might find the Society to be a close cousin of Lois Lowry’s dystopian future in The Giver (1993), with carefully chosen work placements, constant monitoring, and pills for regulating emotional extremes. However, the author just as easily tears this world apart while deftly exploring the individual cost of societal perfection and the sacrifices inherent in freedom of choice. -- Jones, Courtney (Reviewed 09-15-2010) (Booklist, vol 107, number 2, p72)
- · Awards:
o California Young Reader Medal: Young Adult
o Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award (Minnesota) - Division II: Grades 6-8 (post-1996 winners)
o Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Awards: Young Adult
o Rhode Island Teen Book Award
o South Carolina Book Awards: Young Adult Books
o Teen Buckeye Book Award (Ohio)
o YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2011
o YALSA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults: Forbidden Romance (2012)
o YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers: Fiction: 2011
- · Freedom to Read Statement
- · ALA Library Bill of Rights
- · Springville Public Library Collection Development Policy
o The Library Director and designated staff actively evaluate and select materials. The Springville Public Library Board, acting under the authority given to it by Title 4, Chapter 6 of the Springville Municipal Code and Title 09 of the Utah State Code, has the ultimate responsibility for the determination of the policies for selection and acquisition of materials.
o Library materials are selected based on the following (not necessarily in order of priority):
§ Local public demand and usage potential
§ Popularity
§ Subject coverage
§ Relevance
§ Accuracy and currency
§ Presentation, readability and format
§ Point of view (all sides)
§ Cost
§ Local connection
§ Social values
§ Collection balance
§ To assess the item based on the above criteria, staff utilize:
§ Nationally recognized and relevant pre-publication reviews
§ Staff expertise
§ Bestseller lists
§ Patron recommendations and requests
§ Reliable social media reviews
Purpose in the Collection:
The book Matched is a critically acclaimed one, receiving positive reviews from Booklist, Publisher’s Review, and Kirkus, and has received multiple awards, including being placed on the 2011 ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults list. The author is from Utah, where my library is located, which adds to the appeal of placing the book in the library. The book also encourages critical thinking, and emphasizes the importance of reading and writing, which are important as well.
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