I had bought The House of Power back in the summer, I think, mostly because of the cover (although I am not sure if the figure on the right is a girl or a boy-- is it Samuel or Isabel? No idea.). It's quite energetic, and I thought it looked like a potentially good book (it was also about $2-- very good deal). I didn't remember I had it, however, until I read Bart's Best Utopian YA Novels Redux post, which mentions the Atherton series and how awesome it is. Having now read the first book, I can most heartily agree with that sentiment!

I was really surprised by The House of Power. It starts off one way and then these disconcerting things start popping up that made me wonder if I read it correctly. For instance, Atherton is a world orbiting around the "Dark Planet," i.e. Earth after many decades of pollution, destruction, and general irresponsibility. (Think Wall-E.) But this isn't told to the reader right out-- and it's very jarring when you figure it out. Then too the way Atherton is set up: three levels (the Highlands, Tabletop, and Flatlands), where all the power is at the top and the people living in the lower layers have to submit to the toppers because the toppers control the water. It's sort of an obvious metaphor for a political organizational scheme, but it is a MG book, after all. And anyway, it's creepy! How can a place like Atherton exist? It's not spheroid. The bottom part is always pointing towards the Dark Planet. Actually, maybe something is slightly off in the physics of this book. Don't think about it, maybe.

Anyway, I really liked the themes of power, control, freedom, and independence. While Edgar is trying to figure out who he is and what Atherton means, there's an interesting secondary plot with the people living on the top two levels and how the meeting of the two means a complete revolutionary upheaval. There's a really interesting (and creepy) thing near the end where it turns out the dude who created Atherton believed that certain people should be the thinkers and certain other people should be the workers, and that the two can't be mixed. So what happens when the thinker level and the worker level meet? (Hint: it's violent.)

The characters were pretty typical MG fare, but I liked Edgar and his curiosity and nonconformity. I hated Isabel, a girl who kept following Edgar around and bothering him for much of the book, but once she got away from Edgar she was much more likable. Samuel, a boy Edgar meets from the Highlands, was a wet bag of something but he was useful, and I think he'll get better in the next books.

I really liked the writing. It was somehow kind when it could have been harsh, and I liked how it addressed the reader once in a while without being condescending or overly silly. It kept the book lighthearted and less creepy than it could have been had it been written by someone else. It's still creepy, but not in a depressing or hopeless way. There's hope for Atherton, and for Edgar and his friends, and I really look forward to reading the next two books.

If you like dystopian fiction and want something a little different, then you should definitely check out the Atherton trilogy.

Originally posted at Birdbrain(ed) Book Blog. ( )

It was wonderful. ( )

Reviewed by Carrie Spellman for TeensReadToo.com

Edgar knows that he should be working rather than climbing and swinging in the trees, but he just can't seem to help himself -- even if it does earn him a beating from Mr. Ratikan's stick. It would hardly be the first time and it isn't likely to be the last. He also knows he shouldn't be climbing the cliffs, but he has to.

Edgar's world is shaped sort of like a three-leveled top. The top level, the Highlands, are populated by the well-to-do people. They control the water for all of the other levels. If you fell off of the Highlands, and didn't die, you would land on the middle level, Tabletop, which is the level Edgar lives on. They are the workers who harvest food and raise animals. They receive water based on how well they feed the people above. If you fell off of Tabletop and weren't killed by the fall to the Flatlands, you would either be eaten by the monsters that live there, or die of starvation. If you could survive long enough to fall off of the Flatlands, you would fall off of the earth.

Edgar's father fell off of the middle level when Edgar was just a small boy. Edgar has one memory of him, though. The older he gets, the weaker the memory becomes, but he knows that it has to do with a book that he is supposed to find. It's hidden in the cliffs between the top and middle levels. So Edgar climbs, and searches, whenever he can.

In one day Edgar finds the book, climbs all the way to the Highlands (forbidden), and makes a friend (hopefully) there. The biggest discovery Edgar makes that day could be he most dangerous of all. The Highlands are sinking. If the cliffs keep shuddering, eventually the Highlands and Tabletop could be level with each other! That thought alone sends Edgar off on the adventure of a lifetime.

Edgar is off. He is on a search for answers, for the right questions, for his destiny. It's going to get far worse before it gets better.

This book is a fantastic mix of mad scientist, alternate worlds, and realistic people. Patrick Carman hasn't missed a trick in this one; believable characters, a fully imagined and realized world, and an absorbing plot. I had a hard time putting this book down. I can't wait to see what happens next! Though while you're waiting you should check out the very cool, interactive website www.athertonseries.com. ( )

The characters in this book are well crafted, and everything is believable...except the author does put in some weird "narration" where the reader is spoken to directly...odd. But the story is a fast paced fun and strange adventure, and most readers will really enjoy it. I would recommend it to students. The ending reminded me of when I saw the second "Matrix" movie...no ending, and forced you to wait a year for the sequel. While readers won't have to wait a year, it nevertheless shares this predicament. However, for those who enjoy reading more and more about a world that they've discovered, that isn't a problem.

Reason for Reading: It has been quite a while since I've read any science fiction and this series intrigued me very much. With the last book in the trilogy coming out this year (2009) I decided to start from the beginning.

Comments: Edgar is an orphan who lives on the middle tier of a three tiered planet. His tier, Tabletop, is an agricultural world growing figs and producing rabbits and sheep. The top tier, The Highlands, is a powerful world full of the ruling class who have full control over the planet's water and they use this as punishment and incentive to keep production up. At the bottom is the Flatlands. No one knows anything about the Flatlands, they appear dusty, dry and full of rocks and whether anyone or anything could even live down there little speculation exists. Edgar in the meantime has an inborn need to climb. Even though climbing the cliff between tiers is forbidden upon bodily harm or even death he sneaks out each night climbing the cliff looking for something. He knows not what, just a feeling and a brief memory from his toddlerhood of a man telling him something special is hidden in the cliff for him and so he searches.

Absolutely fabulous! I can't say how much I enjoyed this book. The premise is so unique and the directions the plot takes you are full of surprises. Edgar is 11 and he befriends a girl, Isabel, who is about 9. Both characters are strong and have a realistic relationship with each other; Isabel "bothering" Edgar to a certain degree yet a deep trustful friendship forms. Isabel is an independent girl who shows respect for her parents even when running off to join the adventures. An especially captivating story, one that makes you just need to read "one" more chapter and it kept an expectant smile on my face the whole way through.

Only one little quibble and my regular readers will see this coming. The book ends in the middle of the story with a cliffhanger. This stops me from giving a full rating of 5 stars. I like each individual book in a trilogy to be a whole book in and of itself while being a part of a greater whole. No cliffhanger endings! Anyway fortunately this isn't 2007 and I don't have to wait another year for the next book. In fact I have the next book sitting on my bedside table and will be starting it probably tomorrow. I can't wait to see what happens next. Highly recommended but make sure you have book 2 waiting right beside you! ( )