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Lauren Miller
HarperTeen
May 13, 2014 / ISBN 0062199803
Teen / Science Fiction / Thriller / Gr 9 Up
Reviewed
by Elise Cooper
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Lauren
Miller’s latest novel, Free To Fall, is a powerful
story. The plot takes place fifteen years into the future, a
warning of how technology can overtake peoples’ lives.
This is a must read for anyone dependent on technology. The
storyline is part science fiction, part mystery-thriller.
The plot has peoples’ inner voice and intuition eliminated.
They get fulfillment from following what this app, Lux, recommends.
But it becomes more than that since everyone seems to be consulting
Lux for every aspect of their lives. Taking place fifteen years
in the future, Apple and Google have been replaced by Gnosis,
a conglomerate corporation that allows their new app, Lux, to
optimize decision-making for the best personal results. Rory,
a sixteen year old, is addicted to this new app just like everyone
else. But after being accepted to the Theden Academy, a college
prep boarding school, she starts to question her dependence
on technology. The mystery begins when Rory, with the help of
North, a townie who is anti-establishment, uncovers a truth
about her parents, the technology, and her school.
This powerful theme explores how everyone communicates mostly
with their technology rather than through human contact. Think
about today where everyone is attached to their tablets and
phones, posting to Twitter, and listening to music on their
ear buds. Those who don’t think it is realistic look no
farther than a new Facebook app, which can listen to peoples’
conversations and knows their surroundings through the phone’s
microphone. Although today technology is not to the point where
it is programmed to think for people, the author explores the
idea of what technology could do in the not so distant future.
In the story Apple’s Siri is being replaced by the next
generation Lux, which makes life decisions.
Miller commented, “As a society we are hyper-focused on
personal independence and freedom, yet we cede so much of our
decision making to these little rectangular devices. Our map
app tells us which route to take and we do, even though it could
lead us in the wrong direction. We use Google to provide us
with the information needed, yet, never go beyond the first
page. This is very scary to me. We are not skeptical enough.
I wanted to write a story about free will and how dependent
we have become on technology. I have Lux as a Siri on steroids.
Gnosis is Google meets Apple. All these companies have a lot
of control over our lives. They definitely have more information
than they need and having the information is very powerful.
I wanted to show what could happen if these devices become more
accurate and are integrated into our lives. I am afraid we may
let them make our decisions and that is very alarming to me.
This is us signing up with our eyes wide open allowing these
corporations to see what we are doing and making our choices.”
Miller skillfully parallels the past, present, and future. She
does this by referencing secret societies, John Steinbeck’s
East of Eden, John Milton’s Paradise Lost,
and the Old Testament. There is a lot of symbolism
from the story of Adam and Eve, Steinbeck’s “Timshel,”
that emphasizes making good choices, and Milton’s Paradise
Lost where Satan replaces the Serpent as a Garden of Eden
tale. As with all these references the author shows how some
in society think they are more knowledgeable than anyone else
and become G-d like.
Miller noted, “I wanted the characters in this book to
mirror those in the story of the Garden of Eden. We need to
use our free will to make choices, especially the correct choice.
That is why I put in the Hebrew word, “Timshel,”
because I loved this idea of choosing to make the good choice.
We need to exercise our free will with our brain. I think we
re-live the Adam and Eve story over and over again. Eve let
someone else tell her what to do and in my book I have this
app, Lux, doing the same. She let the serpent trick her into
giving up her freedom. We are no different. We let ourselves
be managed and controlled while pretending we are calling the
shots.”
Free To Fall is an engaging and thought-provoking novel.
The story line has a lot of action, romance, secrecy, and insightful
issues. The topics explored are realistic and could easily happen
in the not so distant future, which made the drama very intense.
It is a must read for anyone living in the techno-world.
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