Review: Welcome to a whole new world
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 01 30, 2013
The Stolen consisted of two short stories in the dystopia era. The first; The Fields tells of a governess who misbehaved (or so they say) and is sent to a reformatory with others like her. Each incarcerated for minor and I mean minor, infractions.Michelle describes a world where nothing seems to be pleasant but the main character, Clarice and her sidekick Margo make the best of the situation, sheer drudgery, lack of freedom, repression...unable enjoy pleasure, it was pure hell. But Clarice endured, `till she lost Margo. Michelle's description of her sorrow and her loss of spirit was heart wrenching.As written, "she broke" was the turn of Clarice's survival mojo. The last two pages of The Fields brought everything to light, not only did Clarice survive but she got her friend Margo back and others who would form a coalition to live their lives without repression.In The Word-Thieves, you have a totally different setting. In outer space, where you have Sarah, who works on one planet and Crystal, who works on another, the two can only communicate through letters. Michelle conveys Sarah's frustration with being isolated and the only thing to entertain her, are Crystals accounts of what's going on in her side of the universe.Michelle's description of Io was perfect. I could see the tubal shaped city with its glassy corridors. Sarah apparently took a job that she absolutely hated, but because she needed money, needed to be able to use her degree, wanted a new life that didn't suck. But is what she got in return, worth it? She lamented over the fact there were certain activities and freedoms that were not allowed. One thing that made her tolerate this world was reuniting with an old friend from another planet.Michelle's humor throughout was refreshing, "Soy Chicken Blandwich" was hilarious. Michelle has opened up an entire new world, and in its dystopia manner, it gives the downsides of man's decisions.All in all,  I appreciate the author opening my eyes to this new world and to appreciate the things and freedom I do have. I am giving this five stars because the writing was sharp, the surroundings and landscape were described perfectly. The girls' story kept me riveted, not because it was a happy-go-lucky story but of two women in different situations...coping and surviving.