How I Live Now

Bibliography:
Rosoff, Meg. How I live now. New York: Wendy Lamb Books, 2004. ISBN-10 0385746776

Plot Summary:
How I Live Now is the story of a girl, Daisy, who moves from New York City to live with her cousins in the English countryside. She was sent there in the midst of tension, which devolved into hostile occupation of England while she and her cousins are taking care of themselves. Daisy grows as she falls in love with her cousin Edmond and ensures the survival and her cousin Piper and herself in a warzone.

Critical Analysis:
While this novel deals with many heavy issues (anorexia, teenage sexual relationships between cousins, and death), it manages to do so without fully overwhelming the reader. Daisy’s experiences are described in just enough detail to let the reader envision what is happening, but enough detail is left out that the reader is able to fill in enough with imagination to make it believable, such as describing the way the sun felt on her skin when she was swimming, but not explaining exactly how she fell in love with her cousin.
Unfortunately, I personally felt that the story was too disjointed to make as deep an impact as would otherwise have been possible. The jump to the future near the end of the novel is too abrupt without an explanation of what happened to get there and causes the reader to detach from the book, consequently not enjoying it as much or taking away the intended lessons.

Review Excerpts:
School Library Journal – “Impending war, parental rejection, and anorexia are Daisy's concerns as she steps off the plane in England where she's been sent to stay with her Aunt Pen and her four cousins. The 15-year-old has landed in a chaotic but supportive country household where she is immediately intrigued by her cousin, Edmund. In this novel (Wendy Lamb Books, 2004), Meg Rosoff explores what happens when war leaves these five youngsters to fend for themselves. There are the hardships of finding food and the loss of their mother, but there is also freedom and unexpected tenderness that evolves into an intense physical relationship between Daisy and Edmund…. Though the novel has disturbing elements, Rosoff handles the harshness of war and the taboo of incest with honest introspection. This Printz award winner is a good choice for book discussions as it considers the disruption of war both physically and emotionally and should be on every high school and public library shelf.”
Booklist – “A 15-year-old, contemporary urbanite named Daisy, sent to England to summer with relatives, falls in love with her aunt's ‘oldy worldy’ farm and her soulful cousins--especially Edmond, with whom she forms ‘the world's most inappropriate case of sexual obsession.’ Matters veer in a startling direction when terrorists strike while Daisy's aunt is out of the country, war erupts, and soldiers divide the cousins by gender between two guardians. Determined to rejoin Edmond, Daisy and her youngest cousin embark upon a dangerous journey that brings them face to face with horrific violence and undreamt-of deprivation. Just prior to the hopeful conclusion, Rosoff introduces a jolting leap forward in time accompanied by an evocative graphic device that will undoubtedly spark lively discussions. As for the incestuous romance, Daisy and Edmond's separation for most of the novel and the obvious emotional sustenance Daisy draws from their bond sensitively shift the focus away from the relationship's implicit (and potentially discomfiting) physical dimension. More central to the potency of Rosoff's debut, though, is the ominous prognostication of what a third world war might look like, and the opportunity it provides for teens to imagine themselves, like Daisy, exhibiting courage and resilience in roles traditionally occupied by earlier generations.”

Connections:
Other books dealing with teenagers struggling through fictional war include:
Marsden, John. Tomorrow, When the War Began. ISBN 9780440219859
Bracken, Matthew. Foreign Enemies and Traitors. ISBN 9780972831031