Young, Suzanne.
The Program. SimonPulse, 2013.
The teenage suicide rate has ballooned to 33%, making
it a national epidemic. No one knows the
reason for the growth, but scientists have concluded that suicide is
contagious. Teens are constantly watched
and monitored by their parents and their teachers. They are not allowed to cry or grieve for
their family and friends who have died.
Teens who show the slightest sign of being sad or depressed are
“flagged” and taken away by handlers, where they are put in “The Program”, a
six-week pilot program aimed at getting rid of inappropriate feelings and
emotions that could lead to death. Those
teenagers come back into society as “returners”--with cleansed memories, but to
their parents, they are healthy and emotionally sound.
Sloane Barstow lost her brother, Brady, who drowned
himself; her best friend, Lacey, is taken and put into The Program. When Sloane’s childhood friend, Miller,
commits suicide by drinking poison, she is terrified that she and her
boyfriend, James, will be flagged. Both
of them hide their feelings and try to act like Miller’s death has not affected
them. James promises that he will keep he
and Sloane safe and out of The Program, but ultimately, he is not able to do
so.
The Program is beginning of a promising and engaging dystopian
series. The novel is extremely
character-driven, told in first person by Sloane Barstow. Through her eyes, readers are able to see the
fear that teens feel at losing their friends, both to suicide and to The
Program. Parents are desperate to save
their children at all costs. Doctors and
nurses employed by The Program display ruthlessness bordering on child abuse,
using force, coercion, over-medication, and manipulation to achieve desired
results. Teens are powerless and have no
rights. It is they against adults/the
government.
James is the perfect boyfriend—handsome, thoughtful,
and funny. He would go to the ends of
the earth for Sloane, who is stronger than she thinks. Even they are only teenagers, their love
feels fresh and real. Although James
promises that he will keep them both safe, it is Sloane who must pretend that
everything is fine. It is heart breaking
and devastating when James is taken, because Sloane knows that when he returns
he won’t remember her or what they had together.
I really felt that the true theme of The Program is that love conquers all,
and that some people are just destined to be together. Readers won’t be able to resist the romance in
the novel or the love triangle that occurs later in the book. I highly recommend it for high school and
public libraries. Five out of five fleur de lis!
Reviewer’s note:
The copy of the book reviewed was a digital ARC received from Edelweiss
Above the Treeline in exchange for an honest review.
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