I have read several books lately that deal with what the world will be like AFTER the big one. I don't know if it is a good idea for young people to read this kind of book. Yet, they are all written for Tweens. The City of Ember is the latest one I read. It was sad, scarey and disturbing. I would have hated to read that book as a kid. I love mysteries where everything goes wrong but I don't think I want my little ones to even think about a world that survives after a global disaster.
Of course in these books, it is always the kids who "save the day". Ember is an underground city where a group of people were hidden before the final disaster happened. Scientists knew it was coming. In the end, they ran out of everything and had to leave but no one knew how to get out.
In the sequel, the people above ground hate and mistrust the cave people. They are cruel, deceptive and unfriendly. Do kids really need this kind of material? We try to teach tolerance, sharing, caring, and love and to read a book like this destroyed all of these emotions. This book talks about getting even, stealing because they feel cheated, and going crazy. I just feel very uncomfortable with it.
What bothers me the most in these books is that God disappeared in all of their disasters. What makes them think that God would allow that to happen? Why does an author think that faith is dispensable along with all of the worldly things. What a very sad life they have without the knowledge of God. These books make me very sad.