Caramel reviews The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau

Today Caramel reviews The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau, the second book in the author’s City of Ember series, published in 2004. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Readers may recall that Marshmallow has already reviewed the first book, City of Ember.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, can you tell us a bit about what this book is about?

Caramel: The people of Ember come up to the surface and settle down in a town named Sparks.

S: Wait. Tell us a bit more about Ember. It is the city from the first book, City of Ember, right?

C: Yes. But at the end of that book, most of the people from that city ran away because their generator was failing and the city would soon be uninhabitable.

S: That is a big word, Caramel!

C: Yes, but it is the right word. It would be too dark without the generator, and it would be unlivable for people. And for bunnies of course. Because we like light too.

S: Sure we do. So okay, I remember that the first book had two main heroes, named Lina and Doon. Are they also in this book?

C: Yes, in fact they are again the heroes.

S: Okay, so what is the conflict of this book then? They are out and found a place to live.

C: Yes but the new place Sparks is not big enough or rich enough for all the people living there plus the new people from Ember.

S: I see. So there is some conflict between the two groups?

C: Yep.

S: Hmm, so in some sense it is a bit about immigration and refugees finding a new home but not feeling terribly welcome.

C: Kind of. But also Sparks people do not even have electricity. They do not know about it.

S: Hmm, that is interesting. I remember that in Ember, they had electricity even though they did not understand fully how it worked. So you are saying that they do not even have that much here in Sparks?

C: Yes.

S: So do the Ember folks try to teach them about electricity?

C: Well, only in the end. Doon finally figures it out.

S: Hmm, is that getting too close to spoiler territory?

C: Perhaps.

S: Okay so let us stop here with the plot then.

S: Tell me about Doon and Lina next. Are they any different in this book?

C: They are about the same. This book starts quite soon after the other book ends. So they are more or less the same people. They are curious and sometimes make mistakes, but they are trying to help their people.

S: I see. That sounds good. Are there any new characters that appear in this book that you liked?

C: Well, there is a whole new town of people, but I liked only Maddy. She is nice.

S: Who is she?

C: She is the traveling partner of Casper.

S: Who is Casper?

C: He is a person looking around in old ruins and finds things and brings them back to Sparks to trade them for other stuff.

S: So they are not quite from Sparks.

C: No. There seem to be a lot of small settlements all around, and some are abandoned.

S: I see. So this is some sort of a post-apocalyptic world.

C: Yes. It seems like this is a world after a World War Three.

S: Hmm, this reminds me of a quote by Albert Einstein: “I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.” 

C: Yes, that is essentially what is happening in this world. I mean, they are not going to start another big war, but they lost almost all of the modern technology of today and the knowledge behind it.

S: That is interesting. And sobering at the same time. Alright, let us get back to the book. Did you enjoy reading it? Do you think you will read the next book in the series?

C: Yes. And yes.

S: I wonder if Marshmallow will read the third book before you so she can review it.

C: We can wait and see.

S: Alright. Let us do that. So before we wrap up this review, can you describe the book in three words?

C: Happy ending page-turner.

S: Hmm, that is a good description. I might need to read it before Marshmallow gets her paws on it.

C: You probably will.

S: Alright. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!