Title: Delirium (#1 in the Delirium series)

Author: Lauren Oliver

Publisher: Harper Teen

Length: 480 pages

My Rating: 5/5 Stars

                My Rating Scale:

                1 Star= I flat out hated it/terrible/I wanted to scratch my eyes out.

                2 Stars= I didn’t like it

                3 Stars= It was okay/I moderately liked it

                4 Stars= I really liked it, but it wasn’t totally perfect

                5 Stars= Holy literary gods! I LOVED this book!

Plot Summary:

Lena Holoway lives in a dystopian society in which amor deliria nervosa (known by us as, love) is illegal.  Living in this world her whole life, Lena looks forward to her mandatory medical procedure in which doctors will physically cut out the section of her brain that allows her to feel the various emotions associated with love so she will ultimately never experience it.  However, months before her procedure, Lena meets Alex.  Alex.  The rebel.  The mysterious.  The exact person Lena needs to help her see the corruptions in society.  Now, Lena wants nothing more than to love and be loved freely.  Yet, with societies imposing laws, will their relationship last?

Thoughts:

As I started this book, I honestly couldn’t understand what all the “hype” was about this novel.  If anything, the first 50 pages were a bit slow and just focused on world-building.  I was disappointed.  However, as I continued reading, the addiction seeped in.  After finishing this book, I can firmly stand by a perfect 5/5 star rating.  I loved it.  Wait…did I just say I LOVED this book?  Bite me, dystopian government.

I have heard a lot of people find fault with the world building in this book.  Basically, a lot of people find this world to be too unrealistic, and I get it!  How could you ever believe/live in a world where love is illegal?  I pondered this.  After stepping in Lena’s shoes for a bit, I had a book discovery.  Think about it!  We live in a world where we believe drugs are bad and illegal.  Of course, there are those people who want certain drugs to be legalized because they claim they do not truly harm the individual.  Still, there are a majority that oppose this viewpoint.  Of course, government has to make a “stand” in the drug debate, so there are laws that illegalize drugs and drug activity and there are those who enforce these laws.  Additionally, at young ages we are taught to stay away from drugs (JUST SAY NO!).  For us, the use of drugs is illegal and wrong.  It’s all we know, and we believe that is right.  Now, flash forward 100 years later, maybe there will be a huge movement in which drugs do become legal…it could happen.  Society is fickle.  Our opinions change.  One second something is okay; the next second something is wrong.  So, that is how I found this world to be believable.  The world is relatable.  We just have to be open-minded and think about it on that level.  Therefore, I didn’t have a problem with the world building. It was more than believable.  In fact, it was scary.  What if love does becoming illegal?  You can’t love your family; your family doesn’t love you; you can’t love a soulmate; a soulmate can’t love you; you can’t love your dog; your dog can’t love you.  Okay….enough for the depressing moment.

The symbolism in this book is probably some of the best in young adult literature.  First off, the cover is a hidden surprise.  The eye on the back of the book is actually a subtly smoky eye whereas the eye on the front of the book is just a plain natural eye.  Ok, one word: fanfreakingawesome!  The cover really shows the opposing pulls Lena feels throughout the book: should she believe what society tells her, or should she believe what her heart tells her?  I absolutely adored the cover.  Also, the symbolism inside the pages…wow.  My favorite symbol in the book is when Lena sees her neighbor’s dying dog.  Ok, I know it seems bad/sad/depressing.  And, NO nothing is wrong with me!  If you have read this book, you will know the amount of emotions and meanings this scene had behind it.  As soon as this happened, I knew the book was going to “lift off.” 

The romance was sweet and simple.  I rather enjoyed it.  I sometimes am not the biggest fan of young adult romance because it can be a bit cheesy, but this romance was so natural.  It was a beautiful and tender tale about first love.  After I finished this, I told my boyfriend that Alex was a super awesome fictional boyfriend of mine.  Yeah, that didn’t go over well…

Recommendations:

I’d recommend this book to those who enjoy dystopian, apocalyptic, science fiction, romance, and action/adventure books.

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