Simone Chen
Elsewhere
Gabrielle Zevin
Science fiction
Just right
P. 154

1. Right now Liz is dead and in Elsewhere, and lives with her grandmother Betty. Elsewhere is where people go after they die on Earth, and there people age backwards; from old to young. When people get to be a few months old, the babies are sent back to Earth on a river. Liz just dived to the Well to make contact with her living family, because she desperately wants to tell her family where she hid her birthday present for her dad was hidden. She said it was under the floorboards, but her brother thought it was her parents' room's floorboards, when it was really Liz's room's floorboards. Making contact with people on Earth is forbidden, but Liz does it anyway. She is still upset with the fact that she's dead, because she died at age 15 and since she'll age backwards, she'll never be able to get a drivers license, go to college, or be an adult.

2. I really like this book because it portrays an author's imagination of what might happen to us after we die, but she does this without being religious. It has a really good plot and many interesting and unexpected turns that add to the excitement. The author does a good job with describing Liz's shock and reaction when she realized that she is dead. I like how she gave each character a unique personality that is different from all the others. For example Liz is often pessimistic and has many mood swings, while her grandmother Betty is caring, empathetic, and understanding.

3. A theme that I've noticed is forgiveness. When Liz first arrives at Elsewhere she is really depressed, cranky and bad tempered. Her grandmother Betty puts up with all of this for weeks while Liz is trying to absorb the shock and embrace the completely new life she'll be living. When Liz finally stops mourning her own death and apologizes to Betty for her bad attitude, Betty instantly forgives her because she knows that Liz is dealing with a lot and has a lot on her mind. Also, when Liz suddenly starts treating her new friend Thandi badly because of her depression, they stopped being friends for a while. Soon after Liz recovers Thandi forgives Liz because she knows that Liz is really a good person. I think forgiveness is a really important quality to look for in a person, because if you always hold a grudge against somebody because of a small mistake, then you'll lose a really nice person for no reason.

4. My favorite character is Liz's grandmother Betty because she sincerely cares about Liz and is always there to support her through tough times. When Liz was still mad and confused about being dead Betty comforted her and stayed by her side the whole time, even if at some times Liz treated Betty badly. Betty knows how hard it is for a young girl like Liz to let go of the only life you've ever known and embrace a knew one in an unfamiliar place with people you don't know. Betty is understanding, supportive, and always there for Liz.

5. My least favorite character is the man who was driving the cab that hit Liz and killed her. He is not necessarily a bad person, but he knew that he hit somebody, but didn't bother to stay with her or call for help; it was a hit-and-run event. Liz's parents don't even know who hit their daughter. I don't hate him because he probably had a fairly good reason for not stopping, but I just think he made a bad decision of not stopping to see if Liz was ok.

6. I predict that somebody, either Liz herself or Owen Welles (the man that caught Liz illegally making contact with people on Earth) will go back to the Well and clarify to Liz's family where she hid her dad's birthday present, because this will make them feel better about Liz's sudden death.