Dystopia by Janet McNulty

In the distant future the United States has been split into two regions separated by a barren wasteland; this is the country of Dystopia. Here the individual is discouraged, freedom is an illusion, food is rationed, and everything you do is tracked by a chip implanted in your arm. This is Dana Ginary’s world. 

At age seventeen, people receive their career assignments chosen for them by a government body. Forced to work at the Waste Management Plant because she was declared too individualistic, Dana finds herself surrounded by death and brutality. Knowing her days are numbered, she looks for a way to leave the plant before she, too, becomes one of its causalities. 

It is then she meets a man named George and soon finds herself caught up in a cat and mouse game between the resistance and the Dystopian government. Dana finds herself faced with an agonizing choice of whom she will betray and whom she will save: her friend George, her parents, or herself. 

The eyes are always watching.

There are elements of 1984 in here, and earlier chapters reminded me a little of the City of Ember, but I persevered and was able to engage with events a little easier after Dana's arrival at the Waste Management Plant. Her character begins to develop a little as she finds her way around this prison camp styled facility, making both friends and enemies, but a lot of the secondary characters did seem a little flat.

There are a few issues with the plot in this book, minor details that could be fixed by developing the characters a bit more. Overall though, I really enjoyed Dystopia, although I believe it is better suited to younger readers in the young adult age group. It was a quick read, but there were a lot of interesting dilemma's for the young protagonist to work her way through. I would certainly be interested in reading more from this author.