The Ironic Cherry... Reads

I can't believe he wrote this....

The Doubt Factory by Paolo Bacigalupi is a young adult book.  Everyone should read it.  Young adults won't be able to put it down, but neither will you.  Not only does the book have rebellion and romance, excitement and suspense, it is a political book.  The plot revolves around the powerful, shadowy world of corporate product defense, and from the very personal viewpoint of the teenage daughter of the company's president.

As I read, I waited with bated breath.  No, not for the fast-paced plot twists, although they were there.  I waited for the author to back down, to sell out, to find the squishy, happy, compromise ending.  That didn't happen.  This is a book written by an activist, writing about the horrific effects of those public relations and legal defense specialists on any attempt to shine light on bad products.  The whole history of this industry, from tobacco to attacks on the EPA to defense of dangerous drugs, is described in a very vital way.

Just as I can't believe Bacigalupi wrote this, and that Little, Brown published it, I can't believe it is on our library's shelves.  The author is a National Book Award finalist, which lends legitimacy and authority, making it the rare book for young adults that speaks the truth about the world they are coming up in, the world of the Koch brothers and the pharmaceutical giants.

Buy it or check it out and by all means, read it yourself, and pass it on to any and every young adult you know.