Review - The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

Paperback: 291 pages
Publisher: Random House
Publication date: 26 June 2012
ISBN13: 9780812984750

On an ordinary Saturday in a California suburb, Julia awakes to discover that something has happened to the rotation of the earth. The days and nights are growing longer and longer; gravity is affected; the birds, the tides, human behavior, and cosmic rhythms are thrown into disarray. In a world that seems filled with danger and loss, Julia also must face surprising developments in herself, and in her personal world-divisions widening between her parents, strange behavior by her friends, the pain an vulnerability of first love, a growing sense of isolation, and a surprising, rebellious new strength. With crystalline prose and the indelible magic of a born storyteller, Karen Thompson Walker gives us a breathtaking portrait of people finding ways to go on in an ever-evolving world.

When I started this I thought I was going to get some kind of Apocalyptic End of the World type story but I can't really say that's how it turned out. It's more a coming of age type story with a bit of monumental planetary change in the background.

It's a very good story and it's very well written, this lady can definitely tell a great story. It's just not what I was expecting. I thought the title was referring to an Age as a period in time but now I'm wondering if it's a reference to the chronological age of the narrator.

The narrator is 11 year old Julia and she tells her story mostly from a point in the future as she looks back on what happened when the Earth stopped rotating. What we never find out is 'why' it happened. I'm not sure if it's because Julia is/was 11 and just wasn't concerned with the 'why's' but it was a little frustrating to only get some of the picture.

Mostly it's about growing up, first love, transitioning into adulthood and dealing with pre-teen issues...with a backdrop of potential apocalypse. If it were just a straightforward coming of age tale I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much. It's a great story but I was in it for the End Of The World and seeing that side of things play out were what kept me going.

Very well done and scarily believable. Overall I really liked it and would recommend it..