Earth & Sky
Razorbill / Penguin Books Canada
By Megan Crewe
298 pages
age 13-18
Synopsis from Penguin:
Seventeen-year-old Skylar has always been haunted by fleeting yet powerful feelings that something around her has gone wrong. Those impressions have never seemed to reflect anything real and have only earned her stares and whispers behind her back. But after she meets a mysterious boy named Win, she learns an unsettling truth: we are not alone on Earth. In fact, visitors from beyond the stars are manipulating our planet and the essential fabric of our world; life as we know it is starting to unravel. And Skylar–and her heightened awareness–just may be the key to our salvation.
The first book in the Sky Trilogy, Earth & Sky, will appeal to science fiction fans. After reading Until We Meet Again, I have the whole butterfly effect on my mind. Earth & Sky also tackles this issue as Skylar travels back in time to help Win, a member of a rebel group trying to save the Earth. Skylar falls somewhat unknowingly into her rebel role because of her anxiety. The premise is that the anxiety people deal with, a sense that something is wrong, isn’t an illness but rather a sensitivity to changes in human history. I found this take refreshing and if you’re open to the realm of new possibilities, why couldn’t this be possible?
Skylar also faces the challenge to choose between what she wants personally versus what is right for the world. What happens when you interact with history? What if you change an action to save yourself, how does this affect the future (your present day)?
Along with the science fiction of time travel and the gift to sense changes in history, young readers will enjoy the focus around young people acting on their own, taking risks to save others. Skylar and Win are both teens, unsure of what they are doing and the final outcome, wanting to prove themselves and fit in but following through on their actions and beliefs to make things better. And although the story seems to wrap up, it leaves a nice hook to draw you into the second book, Clouded Sky, and the third book, Sky Unbroken.
I also enjoyed that the story, beyond the time traveling and some of the tools the Enforcers and rebel forces had available to them, wasn’t too far into the science fiction world. The action revolved around Earth and Earth’s history. Earth & Sky took something relatable and added a new perspective, giving you something to think about.
Additional Reading: The Vindico.
You can find a copy of Earth & Sky from Penguin Canada or your local bookstore. Visit our Kid’s Books section for other great book recommendations.