by: Nikki Erlick
Goodreads description:
Eight ordinary people. One extraordinary choice.
It seems like any other day. You wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and head out.
But today, when you open your front door, waiting for you is a small wooden box. This box holds your fate inside: the answer to the exact number of years you will live.
From suburban doorsteps to desert tents, every person on every continent receives the same box. In an instant, the world is thrust into a collective frenzy. Where did these boxes come from? What do they mean? Is there truth to what they promise?
As society comes together and pulls apart, everyone faces the same shocking choice: Do they wish to know how long they’ll live? And, if so, what will they do with that knowledge?
The Measure charts the dawn of this new world through an unforgettable cast of characters whose decisions and fates interweave with one another: best friends whose dreams are forever entwined, pen pals finding refuge in the unknown, a couple who thought they didn’t have to rush, a doctor who cannot save himself, and a politician whose box becomes the powder keg that ultimately changes everything.
Helen says: 🤓🤓🤓 1/2
I love this kind of book/movie…somewhat dystopian science fiction…and I love an original idea…very rare these days. This was the most readable book of the month. It was very well written and had a tidy ending. the author’s political leanings really bled through in her writing. It was kind of exhausting and checked every box in political correctness. I really enjoyed this though!
Holly says: 🤓🤓🤓3/4
The most thought provoking and disturbing selection of the month, and that is saying a lot because we seemed to nail “disturbing” this month. This is also the easiest read of the month. I loved most of the characters, especially Ben. How would you live your life with a short string? Or the long string? Or would you choose not to open the box to see your string? Could you resist? Lots of focus on prejudice and bias, which is all unaccpetable to the author, unless your bias is against perfectly nice white, female, spray tanning, smokers – a little disconnect there, and somewhat annoying.
Helen and Holly Hit the Books 