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And Then the Sky Exploded
When Christian learns his great-grandfather helped build the A-bombs dropped on Japan, he wants to make amends…somehow.
While attending the funeral of his great-grandfather, ninth-grader Christian Larkin learns that the man he loved and respected was a member of the Manhattan Project, the team that designed and created the atomic bombs dropped on Japan during the Second World War.
On a school trip to Japan, Chris meets eighty-one-year-old Yuko, who was eleven when the first bomb exploded over Hiroshima, horribly injuring her. Christian is determined to do something to make up for what his great-grandfather did. But after all this time, what can one teenager really do? His friends tell him it’s a stupid idea, that there s nothing he can do. And maybe they’re right.
Or maybe, just maybe…they’re wrong.
While attending the funeral of his great-grandfather, ninth-grader Christian Larkin learns that the man he loved and respected was a member of the Manhattan Project, the team that designed and created the atomic bombs dropped on Japan during the Second World War.
On a school trip to Japan, Chris meets eighty-one-year-old Yuko, who was eleven when the first bomb exploded over Hiroshima, horribly injuring her. Christian is determined to do something to make up for what his great-grandfather did. But after all this time, what can one teenager really do? His friends tell him it’s a stupid idea, that there s nothing he can do. And maybe they’re right.
Or maybe, just maybe…they’re wrong.
208 pages, Paperback
First published November 15, 2016
About the author
David A. Poulsen
31 books25 followersDavid A. Poulsen has been a rodeo competitor and rodeo clown, rock singer, high school football coach, stage and film actor, documentary television writer and host, and college English instructor. Since retiring from rodeo competition - he admits to being a not-very-good bareback rider and later an accident-prone rodeo clown, David Poulsen has taken up residence in announcer's stands across North America. The results have been tremendously positive both for David and audiences who have listened to his knowledgeable and enthusiastic commentary for the last twenty-six years.
With 1500 performances to his credit, the likable Alberta native has appeared at many of the major rodeos and bull riding events in Canada, among them the Canadian Finals Rodeo (three times), the Calgary Stampede for the last sixteen years in a row and, the PCB Bull Riding Finals. He has been at the microphone for twenty-eight Finals events in seven different associations. Equally at home in front of a TV camera, he has been seen on CTV Wide World of Sports, TSN Television Sports and each year co-hosts the popular Stampede Roundup program on Calgary's CFCN-TV with Glen Campbell. He also acted as co-host of the documentary series The Complete Rider for The Outdoor Life Network. David's announcing talents have also taken him to the big screen. He twice played the role of a rodeo announcer in the successful family series The Black Stallion and was behind the microphone for the rodeo scenes in the movie Convict Cowboy that starred Jon Voigt
David is also a successful writer with some 17 published books to his credit. His writing career began in earnest in 1984 when his short story The Welcomin’ won the Alberta Culture Short Story Writing Competition. His newest book Last Sam's Cage (published by Key Porter Books, Toronto, ON) arrived in bookstores in October, 2005 and has been enjoying a tremendous reception with readers across Canada and beyond. Because a number of his books target young readers, David spends between 60 and 80 days a year in classrooms across Canada, talking to kids about his books and his life as a writer and sharing his stories with students.
David and his wife Barb raise running quarter horses on a small but picturesque ranch (El Rancho Pequino) in the Alberta foothills west of Claresholm.
With 1500 performances to his credit, the likable Alberta native has appeared at many of the major rodeos and bull riding events in Canada, among them the Canadian Finals Rodeo (three times), the Calgary Stampede for the last sixteen years in a row and, the PCB Bull Riding Finals. He has been at the microphone for twenty-eight Finals events in seven different associations. Equally at home in front of a TV camera, he has been seen on CTV Wide World of Sports, TSN Television Sports and each year co-hosts the popular Stampede Roundup program on Calgary's CFCN-TV with Glen Campbell. He also acted as co-host of the documentary series The Complete Rider for The Outdoor Life Network. David's announcing talents have also taken him to the big screen. He twice played the role of a rodeo announcer in the successful family series The Black Stallion and was behind the microphone for the rodeo scenes in the movie Convict Cowboy that starred Jon Voigt
David is also a successful writer with some 17 published books to his credit. His writing career began in earnest in 1984 when his short story The Welcomin’ won the Alberta Culture Short Story Writing Competition. His newest book Last Sam's Cage (published by Key Porter Books, Toronto, ON) arrived in bookstores in October, 2005 and has been enjoying a tremendous reception with readers across Canada and beyond. Because a number of his books target young readers, David spends between 60 and 80 days a year in classrooms across Canada, talking to kids about his books and his life as a writer and sharing his stories with students.
David and his wife Barb raise running quarter horses on a small but picturesque ranch (El Rancho Pequino) in the Alberta foothills west of Claresholm.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
July 6, 2016
At that exact instant a blinding flash - the light of a thousand thousand suns - tore apart the sky above the city.
And Yuko's world would never be the same.
I was little bit worried, because the main theme is the event in Hiroshima in WWII and this genre is usually not easy to read if you are not good familiarized with the topic. But this is not that kind of book. Author's style of writing is easy and the story is dynamic, entertaining and author found a place for light education. And Then the Sky Exploded drawn you easily in - I was, imediately after I finished first chapter.
I am in love with this book, I can highly recommend it and I am sure I will read it again.
***
I received a free copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
And Yuko's world would never be the same.
I was little bit worried, because the main theme is the event in Hiroshima in WWII and this genre is usually not easy to read if you are not good familiarized with the topic. But this is not that kind of book. Author's style of writing is easy and the story is dynamic, entertaining and author found a place for light education. And Then the Sky Exploded drawn you easily in - I was, imediately after I finished first chapter.
I am in love with this book, I can highly recommend it and I am sure I will read it again.
***
I received a free copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 19, 2016
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This book seems to have a little bit of an identity crisis. While much of the narration style is very consistent with that of a middle grade novel, the addition of the curse words make it inappropriate to fairly call it a middle grade novel. That being said, it reads a bit too young to be a young adult novel as well. It seems to fall somewhere in between the two. Additionally, while rare, the narrator actually has the voice down of a 14 year old boy. Most books with protagonists that age tend to write their characters with greater maturity levels, often leading to inauthentic voices. This voice, however, is highly authentic which is likely why this book seems to fall in between middle grade and young adult.
That being said, And Then the Sky Exploded tells the story of Christian discovering his great grandfather's involvement in the Manhattan Project during World War 2. Christian feels guilt over his great grandfather's involvement, and he finds himself on a trip to Japan because he wants to do something to ease the guilt and ease the suffering that occurred.
At the same time, we learn of Yuko and her story of survival on that day in Hiroshima. I wished that we had been able to hear more of her story. Because her story was not written with the same narration style as Christian's story, this was a very compelling contrast.
This was a very interesting story line idea, but ultimately, it faltered a bit in execution.
This book seems to have a little bit of an identity crisis. While much of the narration style is very consistent with that of a middle grade novel, the addition of the curse words make it inappropriate to fairly call it a middle grade novel. That being said, it reads a bit too young to be a young adult novel as well. It seems to fall somewhere in between the two. Additionally, while rare, the narrator actually has the voice down of a 14 year old boy. Most books with protagonists that age tend to write their characters with greater maturity levels, often leading to inauthentic voices. This voice, however, is highly authentic which is likely why this book seems to fall in between middle grade and young adult.
That being said, And Then the Sky Exploded tells the story of Christian discovering his great grandfather's involvement in the Manhattan Project during World War 2. Christian feels guilt over his great grandfather's involvement, and he finds himself on a trip to Japan because he wants to do something to ease the guilt and ease the suffering that occurred.
At the same time, we learn of Yuko and her story of survival on that day in Hiroshima. I wished that we had been able to hear more of her story. Because her story was not written with the same narration style as Christian's story, this was a very compelling contrast.
This was a very interesting story line idea, but ultimately, it faltered a bit in execution.
February 27, 2018
Ich dachte eigentlich, ich mag das Buch aber je länger ich darüber nachdenke, umso weniger mag ich es....
July 19, 2016
I recently received an ARC of And Then the Sky Exploded by David A. Poulsen courtesy of NetGalley and Dundurn Press in exchange for an honest review. So, here it is:
And Then the Sky Exploded is the story of Christian Larkin, a ninth-grade student who discovers that his recently-deceased great-grandfather was a member of the Manhattan Project. He travels to Japan in order to make up for what his great-grandfather did in the past.
The first half of the novel features flashbacks to a young girl named Yuko, who survived the attack on Hiroshima and the subsequent years of hardship. These flashbacks offer an unflinching look at the horrors of war.
The rest of the first half focuses on Christian’s life at school leading up to his trip to Japan. And this is where I have some issues.
There are LOTS of subplots here that honestly offer nothing to the larger story. We have Christian’s deaf friend Carson, who only exists to send a website address to the protagonist later in the second-half. We have pages upon pages dedicated to a high school football game. Why is it there? I have no idea. We have Christian’s foil in the character of Lorelei. As far as I can tell, she exists only for a moment of redemption at the very end of the novel that makes very little sense (“swish-swish”).
I briefly thought that the author was purposefully contrasting the horrors of war with the frivolity of Christian's daily goings-on. But, honestly, the Christian subplots simply seemed frivolous and superfluous. In order to better serve the overall story, they should have been edited out.
The second half of the novel fared far better. The descriptions of Japan made the trip seem exciting and I definitely learned a thing or two about the culture. The eventual meeting between Christian and an elderly Yuko was handled particularly well.
If I were to suggest this novel to my students it would be mainly for the second half and the overall message of redemption. It could also be used to teach empathy as Christian and his friends are all very caring.
Overall, I would give And Then the Sky Exploded ★★★. A nice story with heart that could use a little bit of editing.
And Then the Sky Exploded is the story of Christian Larkin, a ninth-grade student who discovers that his recently-deceased great-grandfather was a member of the Manhattan Project. He travels to Japan in order to make up for what his great-grandfather did in the past.
The first half of the novel features flashbacks to a young girl named Yuko, who survived the attack on Hiroshima and the subsequent years of hardship. These flashbacks offer an unflinching look at the horrors of war.
The rest of the first half focuses on Christian’s life at school leading up to his trip to Japan. And this is where I have some issues.
There are LOTS of subplots here that honestly offer nothing to the larger story. We have Christian’s deaf friend Carson, who only exists to send a website address to the protagonist later in the second-half. We have pages upon pages dedicated to a high school football game. Why is it there? I have no idea. We have Christian’s foil in the character of Lorelei. As far as I can tell, she exists only for a moment of redemption at the very end of the novel that makes very little sense (“swish-swish”).
I briefly thought that the author was purposefully contrasting the horrors of war with the frivolity of Christian's daily goings-on. But, honestly, the Christian subplots simply seemed frivolous and superfluous. In order to better serve the overall story, they should have been edited out.
The second half of the novel fared far better. The descriptions of Japan made the trip seem exciting and I definitely learned a thing or two about the culture. The eventual meeting between Christian and an elderly Yuko was handled particularly well.
If I were to suggest this novel to my students it would be mainly for the second half and the overall message of redemption. It could also be used to teach empathy as Christian and his friends are all very caring.
Overall, I would give And Then the Sky Exploded ★★★. A nice story with heart that could use a little bit of editing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 5, 2016
NetGalley Copy in exchange of an honest review.
Chris is 14 when his great grandfather passes away. But with his death, the mystery of his life unravels, and soon Chris discovers that that man, whom he looked up to, worked on the Manhattan Project. The very project that led to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
I really loved this book. I feel like the plot in itself is very attractive, because it is very different from what we usually read these days, even in the whole WWII novels genre.
The style was dynamic, fresh and entertaining. Almost poetic, at times, too. The story is educational and important, in my opinion, and this is a book that should be read by many. I really liked Chris, and I think he is a loveable and intelligent character.
Besides, what I especially enjoyed were the back and forth of povs between 1645 and the present, between Yuko and Chris.
The style is light for a heavy subject, and the mixture of the two makes a superb balance. I loved it, it is easy to read.
This is, in my opinion, an important book about true events.
Chris is 14 when his great grandfather passes away. But with his death, the mystery of his life unravels, and soon Chris discovers that that man, whom he looked up to, worked on the Manhattan Project. The very project that led to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
I really loved this book. I feel like the plot in itself is very attractive, because it is very different from what we usually read these days, even in the whole WWII novels genre.
The style was dynamic, fresh and entertaining. Almost poetic, at times, too. The story is educational and important, in my opinion, and this is a book that should be read by many. I really liked Chris, and I think he is a loveable and intelligent character.
Besides, what I especially enjoyed were the back and forth of povs between 1645 and the present, between Yuko and Chris.
The style is light for a heavy subject, and the mixture of the two makes a superb balance. I loved it, it is easy to read.
This is, in my opinion, an important book about true events.
February 11, 2024
How I read this: Free ebook copy received through NetGalley
This book is entirely paved with good intentions, and it absolutely leads the reader straight to hell. In my opinion.
Like, I don't know where to even start, and my review wasn't going to be like this, but then I rolled my eyes at the end TWICE at two developments and both were worse than the other.
A lot of this will be spoiler tagged because there's no other way to talk about it. But also, of course I am not Japanese and by no means am I any reliable source of information. However, I still wanted to point out that I do speak Japanese and have more knowledge about the culture than just your everyday reader. And while I really wanted not to have problems with the story, it just wasn't possible for me. I see these Japanese names mentioned in the thank you section of the book, and I have questions. Did they read the whole thing? Or am I just wrong about these things I personally noticed?
So first of all, the book begins with interweaving stories of a boy and a girl, except the boy is living nowadays, and the girl is a survivor-to-be in Hiroshima. The parts of this book about the girl are really striking and strong, I mean it's hard to not write something strong about this subject matter. But... They are also cut short and underused for what they could have been in the story. The girl is still only there to be the boy's story. She is not really a character - more on that later.
You can also tell that the author can't really write teenagers. What teenager would look for information in a library, instead of the internet? There is also a lot of fatphobia, and what I felt like very forced diversity (diversity is great, but not when you're ticking boxes). I don't even know what I think about the deaf best friend who can lip read. I've read too many opinions by actual deaf people that this is not researched or good for representation, even if your end-goal is good. The simple fact of the matter being, that not many deaf people actually do lip read, because it's more complicated than that, and writing it that way hugely distorts how the hearing people see deaf people. Like "why don't you just lip read like all those characters in the media?" Eh, not how that works, buddy. Then there's the "wise disabled best friend" trope... But again, I'm not deaf, so I'm not necessarily right about this. Just pointing it out that I wasn't a big fan. Would be interesting to hear what a deaf reader thought about this. And whether they beta-read this book prior to publication.
Then there's the whole second eye-roll bit at the end.
And yet, there were more things in the book that I think could have benefited from sensitivity readers who actually know the things written about, as opposed to the author doing their well intentioned but rather poorly done research. A thing I found funny, and a thing that reveals that the author might have not been very aware of Japanese culture, especially for as long ago as WWII, is that when the book starts out, a Japanese girl is getting up in the morning. And she drops her feet down from a bed. Except even now many Japanese sleep on a rolled futon on the floor, and not a bed, it would have been much more so in the case of WWII times. In fact, she wakes up to get birthday presents from her mom, and... Well, birthdays were not celebrated in Japan until after WWII. It's a Western tradition. Again, I wonder what those Japanese people in the thanks section had to say about this? So maybe I'm just wrong, it could be, but I've read books in Japanese and even most of the current ones just have characters sleeping on futons more often...
About the writing itself, I also thought the parts where the kids just go around as tourists in Japan were incredibly boring. He's just describing the most famous sights - probably all things you've heard about - and it's just... I don't know. If I wanted that, I'd watch a travel show. It doesn't help the plot or the setup. And yet, despite this - there are almost no descriptions of the landmarks when they actually reach Hiroshima - they're mostly just mentioned, but not much is said by way of description, so I had to Google all of them to be able to imagine the scenes.) This wasn't the only thing that made me feel like that, it just felt like the book needed more editing. In places, it's including a lot of detail that's just unnecessary. For example, a book's name and author for a book which the character pulls out, opens and puts back? Why? Or did you want to promote a friend's book? (Looked that book up, mostly cause I'm just that curious. Also fatphobic and under-researched and grossly inaccurate about diabetes. Score...) It just felt like so many unnecessary things that could have been made better.
In the end, even though the message is about peace and guilt, and the generational trauma of something vast and horrible, that's all well and good, but it bothered me that I felt like this greatly dehumanized a war crime victim and didn't sit right with me. And I don't even know if I need to begin with white saviorism here, not sure it fully applies, but if your ancestor did something bad, I'm not sure you have to go save anyone. Because they're probably fine now after all those years. Maybe I'm just stretching it here, but it just irked me a lot, as you can see.
So nope, did not enjoy this book, unfortunately. I think it won an award? Maybe I should Google who gives these awards. It would probably answer a lot of my questions. I would imagine all those people live in a bubble who think this was a great message to send. I do think it was well-intentioned, but I also think that it's not... Quite right.
I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook in exchange to my honest review. This has not affected my opinion.
Book Blog | Bookstagram | Bookish Twitter
This book is entirely paved with good intentions, and it absolutely leads the reader straight to hell. In my opinion.
Like, I don't know where to even start, and my review wasn't going to be like this, but then I rolled my eyes at the end TWICE at two developments and both were worse than the other.
A lot of this will be spoiler tagged because there's no other way to talk about it. But also, of course I am not Japanese and by no means am I any reliable source of information. However, I still wanted to point out that I do speak Japanese and have more knowledge about the culture than just your everyday reader. And while I really wanted not to have problems with the story, it just wasn't possible for me. I see these Japanese names mentioned in the thank you section of the book, and I have questions. Did they read the whole thing? Or am I just wrong about these things I personally noticed?
So first of all, the book begins with interweaving stories of a boy and a girl, except the boy is living nowadays, and the girl is a survivor-to-be in Hiroshima. The parts of this book about the girl are really striking and strong, I mean it's hard to not write something strong about this subject matter. But... They are also cut short and underused for what they could have been in the story. The girl is still only there to be the boy's story. She is not really a character - more on that later.
You can also tell that the author can't really write teenagers. What teenager would look for information in a library, instead of the internet? There is also a lot of fatphobia, and what I felt like very forced diversity (diversity is great, but not when you're ticking boxes). I don't even know what I think about the deaf best friend who can lip read. I've read too many opinions by actual deaf people that this is not researched or good for representation, even if your end-goal is good. The simple fact of the matter being, that not many deaf people actually do lip read, because it's more complicated than that, and writing it that way hugely distorts how the hearing people see deaf people. Like "why don't you just lip read like all those characters in the media?" Eh, not how that works, buddy. Then there's the "wise disabled best friend" trope... But again, I'm not deaf, so I'm not necessarily right about this. Just pointing it out that I wasn't a big fan. Would be interesting to hear what a deaf reader thought about this. And whether they beta-read this book prior to publication.
Then there's the whole second eye-roll bit at the end.
And yet, there were more things in the book that I think could have benefited from sensitivity readers who actually know the things written about, as opposed to the author doing their well intentioned but rather poorly done research. A thing I found funny, and a thing that reveals that the author might have not been very aware of Japanese culture, especially for as long ago as WWII, is that when the book starts out, a Japanese girl is getting up in the morning. And she drops her feet down from a bed. Except even now many Japanese sleep on a rolled futon on the floor, and not a bed, it would have been much more so in the case of WWII times. In fact, she wakes up to get birthday presents from her mom, and... Well, birthdays were not celebrated in Japan until after WWII. It's a Western tradition. Again, I wonder what those Japanese people in the thanks section had to say about this? So maybe I'm just wrong, it could be, but I've read books in Japanese and even most of the current ones just have characters sleeping on futons more often...
About the writing itself, I also thought the parts where the kids just go around as tourists in Japan were incredibly boring. He's just describing the most famous sights - probably all things you've heard about - and it's just... I don't know. If I wanted that, I'd watch a travel show. It doesn't help the plot or the setup. And yet, despite this - there are almost no descriptions of the landmarks when they actually reach Hiroshima - they're mostly just mentioned, but not much is said by way of description, so I had to Google all of them to be able to imagine the scenes.) This wasn't the only thing that made me feel like that, it just felt like the book needed more editing. In places, it's including a lot of detail that's just unnecessary. For example, a book's name and author for a book which the character pulls out, opens and puts back? Why? Or did you want to promote a friend's book? (Looked that book up, mostly cause I'm just that curious. Also fatphobic and under-researched and grossly inaccurate about diabetes. Score...) It just felt like so many unnecessary things that could have been made better.
In the end, even though the message is about peace and guilt, and the generational trauma of something vast and horrible, that's all well and good, but it bothered me that I felt like this greatly dehumanized a war crime victim and didn't sit right with me. And I don't even know if I need to begin with white saviorism here, not sure it fully applies, but if your ancestor did something bad, I'm not sure you have to go save anyone. Because they're probably fine now after all those years. Maybe I'm just stretching it here, but it just irked me a lot, as you can see.
So nope, did not enjoy this book, unfortunately. I think it won an award? Maybe I should Google who gives these awards. It would probably answer a lot of my questions. I would imagine all those people live in a bubble who think this was a great message to send. I do think it was well-intentioned, but I also think that it's not... Quite right.
I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook in exchange to my honest review. This has not affected my opinion.
Book Blog | Bookstagram | Bookish Twitter
July 13, 2016
When Christian discovers that his great-grandfather helped to build the A-bombs that were dropped on Japan, he wants to somehow make emends. On a school trip to Japan, Christian meets 81 year old Yuko, who was 11 when the first bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, which injured her horribly. Christian is determined to do something but what can one teenager possibly do? His friends tell him it's a stupid idea, but maybe they are wrong?
I enjoyed this book and thought it was well written and a topic that has not been covered a lot in YA fiction or YA historical fiction. The story goes back and forth between point of views between Christian and Yuko as well as time periods between the present and the past. I thought it was an interesting book about a horrific event that occurred during World War II. It is well written and I thought it was interesting to switch between the present and the past and from two different perspectives. I think that fans of other YA historical fiction, such as that from Ruta Septeys, will also enjoy this book.
Thank you to Dundurn Group for sending me an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this book and thought it was well written and a topic that has not been covered a lot in YA fiction or YA historical fiction. The story goes back and forth between point of views between Christian and Yuko as well as time periods between the present and the past. I thought it was an interesting book about a horrific event that occurred during World War II. It is well written and I thought it was interesting to switch between the present and the past and from two different perspectives. I think that fans of other YA historical fiction, such as that from Ruta Septeys, will also enjoy this book.
Thank you to Dundurn Group for sending me an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 15, 2016
The premise of this novel is what caught my eye, about a teen who discovers that his beloved great-grandfather had been involved in making the bomb that that was used on Hiroshima. He decides that he must go to Hiroshima and somehow make amends. That's a tall order for a novel plot and a tall order for a 14 year old.
Poulsen nails the voice of Christian, that 14 year old boy. He also nails the voice of Yuko, the young girl whose live was devastated at Hiroshima. Poulsen alternates between the two voices, although most of the time he's in Christian's voice.
This is a quick and pleasurable read, mostly dealing with the usual older middle grade stuff of first girlfriend, dealing with a bully, traveling to Japan, but Poulsen slips in much more meaningful things within the weave, like how events of the past ripple and influence subsequent generations.
This is a nuanced novel written with a light touch and will definitely appeal to readers grade 5 and up, both male and female.
Poulsen nails the voice of Christian, that 14 year old boy. He also nails the voice of Yuko, the young girl whose live was devastated at Hiroshima. Poulsen alternates between the two voices, although most of the time he's in Christian's voice.
This is a quick and pleasurable read, mostly dealing with the usual older middle grade stuff of first girlfriend, dealing with a bully, traveling to Japan, but Poulsen slips in much more meaningful things within the weave, like how events of the past ripple and influence subsequent generations.
This is a nuanced novel written with a light touch and will definitely appeal to readers grade 5 and up, both male and female.
November 15, 2016
3.5. For the most part, this was a pleasant surprise. It didn't go too deeply into the debate of whether the atomic bomb was necessary, but what it did cover, it handled maturely. I liked Christian as a narrator (especially since Poulsen recognizes that 14-year-olds do actually swear), but the way the main conflict was wrapped up felt a little half-assed, and there were moments that were unrealistic:
1) The whole ending scene. Read it and you'll know the one I'm talking about.
2) International school trips that can apparently be conceived of, planned and executed in a month.
3) A football player who was born and raised in Saskatchewan but cheers for the Seahawks.
I also would have liked the setting to remain Canadian. I'm not sure why Poulsen had his lead family move to the States, since it would have had the same impact if the main story had been set in Canada.
1) The whole ending scene. Read it and you'll know the one I'm talking about.
2) International school trips that can apparently be conceived of, planned and executed in a month.
3) A football player who was born and raised in Saskatchewan but cheers for the Seahawks.
I also would have liked the setting to remain Canadian. I'm not sure why Poulsen had his lead family move to the States, since it would have had the same impact if the main story had been set in Canada.
July 25, 2016
Thanks to NetGalley
Although the background to this story was compelling, I never felt truly connected with the characters - I really wanted to know more about the backstories to the grandfather, for example, or more about the families; but it was almost like a teen coming of age book which hung loosely around Hiroshima, rather than this being a more important part of the story
Although the background to this story was compelling, I never felt truly connected with the characters - I really wanted to know more about the backstories to the grandfather, for example, or more about the families; but it was almost like a teen coming of age book which hung loosely around Hiroshima, rather than this being a more important part of the story
September 14, 2016
I would like to thank Netgalley and Dundurn for giving me this book to read. This book was a quick easy read. Only took me 3.5 hours to read.
I felt like the main character was having more of an identity crisis rather than really trying to "right" his Great Grand-Father's "Wrong." While there was some mild language, this book was age appropriate.
I felt like the main character was having more of an identity crisis rather than really trying to "right" his Great Grand-Father's "Wrong." While there was some mild language, this book was age appropriate.
December 3, 2018
I received a copy of And Then the Sky Exploded from Dundurn via NetGalley in exchange for an honest and original review. All thoughts are my own.
This book... this book is something unique and good and important.
I don't have much in common with Christian Larkin, it's true. I'm not a teenage boy born in Canada and moved to America, lucky enough to go on high school trips to Japan. And despite this utter lack of similar, shared experiences, I feel some connection to Christian.
I suppose it's about genealogy. And history, very much about the history.
Long story short, Christian's GG Will (short, 21st century-speak for Great-Grandfather William) dies and there are protesters outside his funeral because he, in this fictional tale, was one of the scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project and helped to develop the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Christian had spent his short life believing only that GG Will was a cool old guy who knew lots of things and occasionally played street hockey.
Alerted to this dark family secret, Christian dives into research, trying to understand just what the Manhattan Project meant and suggesting his high school Travel Club (why oh why did my high school not have a Travel Club??? oh, right... we were so poor we had to get paper donated so we could print stuff *sigh*) go to Japan instead of to England.
Christian, the semi-popular and always amusing narrator of the story, wants to atone for the role GG Will had in one of the darkest moments in human history. He wants to understand why and how the man he looked up to could be a part of that.
And strangely, it's a Hiroshima grandmother who was eleven on the day the bomb was dropped who gives him the closure he needs, teaching him that he can still admire the man who simply part of something so much more awful than that one moment and that one action.
It's a very well-rounded story full of meaning. I think it's very important for it's targeted demographic to read.
This book... this book is something unique and good and important.
I don't have much in common with Christian Larkin, it's true. I'm not a teenage boy born in Canada and moved to America, lucky enough to go on high school trips to Japan. And despite this utter lack of similar, shared experiences, I feel some connection to Christian.
I suppose it's about genealogy. And history, very much about the history.
Long story short, Christian's GG Will (short, 21st century-speak for Great-Grandfather William) dies and there are protesters outside his funeral because he, in this fictional tale, was one of the scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project and helped to develop the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Christian had spent his short life believing only that GG Will was a cool old guy who knew lots of things and occasionally played street hockey.
Alerted to this dark family secret, Christian dives into research, trying to understand just what the Manhattan Project meant and suggesting his high school Travel Club (why oh why did my high school not have a Travel Club??? oh, right... we were so poor we had to get paper donated so we could print stuff *sigh*) go to Japan instead of to England.
Christian, the semi-popular and always amusing narrator of the story, wants to atone for the role GG Will had in one of the darkest moments in human history. He wants to understand why and how the man he looked up to could be a part of that.
And strangely, it's a Hiroshima grandmother who was eleven on the day the bomb was dropped who gives him the closure he needs, teaching him that he can still admire the man who simply part of something so much more awful than that one moment and that one action.
It's a very well-rounded story full of meaning. I think it's very important for it's targeted demographic to read.
December 11, 2017
And then the sky exploded by David.A Poulsen
This book is about what happened in Japan on August 6, 1945 in the city of Hiroshima when a bomb dropped during world war 2.Ninth graded boy named Christian finds out that his great-grandfather was one of the scientist involved in making the atomic bomb that killed thousands of people. Wanting to do something to make-up for what his great-grandfather he meets 81 year old Yuko who was 11 years old when the first bomb exploded during his school trip to Japan.But all this time what can one teenager really do?People tell him there is nothing he can really do.Maybe they are right.Or maybe, just maybe.....they are wrong.
When reading this book the author really described what was going on and he made me feel as if I was there when the bomb exploded.He used humor and sadness through out the book and that really fit well with the plot or setting.Like all books And the sky exploded has it's strengths and weaknesses.The book had a lot of descriptive sentences the author makes you feel like you were there when it all happened. But i think the author could be more specific on which characters point of view is being shown because I got really confused at the beginning.
This book is about what happened in Japan on August 6, 1945 in the city of Hiroshima when a bomb dropped during world war 2.Ninth graded boy named Christian finds out that his great-grandfather was one of the scientist involved in making the atomic bomb that killed thousands of people. Wanting to do something to make-up for what his great-grandfather he meets 81 year old Yuko who was 11 years old when the first bomb exploded during his school trip to Japan.But all this time what can one teenager really do?People tell him there is nothing he can really do.Maybe they are right.Or maybe, just maybe.....they are wrong.
When reading this book the author really described what was going on and he made me feel as if I was there when the bomb exploded.He used humor and sadness through out the book and that really fit well with the plot or setting.Like all books And the sky exploded has it's strengths and weaknesses.The book had a lot of descriptive sentences the author makes you feel like you were there when it all happened. But i think the author could be more specific on which characters point of view is being shown because I got really confused at the beginning.
December 11, 2018
Hiroshima--who understands what happened there--why humanity would unleash an atomic weapon against itself?
And Then the Sky Exploded gives this act of war some context and a personal face to the suffering.
But it also gives a sense of redemption and hope the way a young adult novel should.
Plus there is dating, football and Japanese tourist information that lightens what could be a tale of misery.
A wonderful warm story that ultimately underscores a message for peace in the world.
And Then the Sky Exploded gives this act of war some context and a personal face to the suffering.
But it also gives a sense of redemption and hope the way a young adult novel should.
Plus there is dating, football and Japanese tourist information that lightens what could be a tale of misery.
A wonderful warm story that ultimately underscores a message for peace in the world.
September 17, 2017
3.5 stars. A quick, thought provoking read.
August 9, 2016
*I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review*
David A. Poulsen penned And Then the Sky Exploded penned with consideration and subtlety, and provided a modern outlook on the atrocity faced in Japan on August 6th 1945. We join Yuko, an 82 year-old (by my calculations) "Hibokusha" (a surviving victim of the atomic bombing at Hiroshima and Nagasaki), and Christian Larkin, a 14 year-old boy suffering with the knowledge that his beloved great-grandad played a part in designing those weapons.
I'm a bit of a history nerd so I was ready to stick my claws in to this read - I've studied this topic in history a couple times now, and never before have I had such an insight into how Japan actually built up to the atomic bomb, and the long lasting INDIVIDUAL effects of the atrocity. It is truly a pertinent book, and an insightful journey that I'm so glad I was able to read.
What I liked:
- I felt an immediate connection to the characters, which is always a major draw to a book for me. If I'm not a fan of the characters, I just can't connect with the plot on an emotional level (I'm definitely character-favouring in place of plotlines). Yuko and Zaina were both incredibly intriguing, and gentle characters in their nature - they definitely drew me in from the off.
- That being said, the plotline, although fairly basic, kept my interests high and did the job!
- I loved the presentation of the story - the interspersion of Yuko in 1945 after the bomb hit, with present-day Chris was particularly effective as it forced a mental shift in time period, and mood, which served to accentuate the finer details of their stories.
- I loved the use of real Hiroshima stories (such as that of Sadako Sasaki, which was particularly heart-wrenching). It brought home the horrors of the war, without the graphics, and made the story feel super personal. On the same thread, I LOVED THE JAPENESE CULTURE and I am now WISHING I COULD GO ON HOLIDAY THERE. Using real Japanese words, places and formalities etc added to the depth of tangibility in the story - I'm super intrigued by the "Shibuya Crossing".
What I didn't like as much:
- The story was fairly erratic in places; was sometimes hard to follow when events were merged together.
- The ending fell on the cliché side for me. Don't get me wrong, I usually don't have a major problem with cliché plotlines (because I'm a sucker for what I know I like), but it just felt a little out of place in a novel which tackled such a serious theme.
- Also, I wasn't a massive fan of the plot-twist at the end. IT SEEMED TOO OUT OF PLACE FOR MY LIKING *shakes head*
Favourite quotations:
"Rise up, Yuko, and greet the morning sun. Bed is for lazy, flop-eared dogs. The world awaits those who leap from their beds and run to meet it." - mostly because I need this kind of motivation in my mornings *snoozes alarm for the 9th time*
Rating?:
4/5 stars - would have been higher if not for the weird ending tangent.
Would I recommend it?:
Yes, definitely. It tackles the difficult topic with great consideration, and delicacy. If you're put off by premade perceptions of the historical fiction genre, or potentially graphic scenes, it's nothing of the sort! Although the stories were heart-breaking, the actual plotline was heart-warming in itself, and I think any age should use this book as a tactful opportunity to discover more about the Japanese reaction to Hiroshima, and the effects of it that are still prevalent to this day!
David A. Poulsen penned And Then the Sky Exploded penned with consideration and subtlety, and provided a modern outlook on the atrocity faced in Japan on August 6th 1945. We join Yuko, an 82 year-old (by my calculations) "Hibokusha" (a surviving victim of the atomic bombing at Hiroshima and Nagasaki), and Christian Larkin, a 14 year-old boy suffering with the knowledge that his beloved great-grandad played a part in designing those weapons.
I'm a bit of a history nerd so I was ready to stick my claws in to this read - I've studied this topic in history a couple times now, and never before have I had such an insight into how Japan actually built up to the atomic bomb, and the long lasting INDIVIDUAL effects of the atrocity. It is truly a pertinent book, and an insightful journey that I'm so glad I was able to read.
What I liked:
- I felt an immediate connection to the characters, which is always a major draw to a book for me. If I'm not a fan of the characters, I just can't connect with the plot on an emotional level (I'm definitely character-favouring in place of plotlines). Yuko and Zaina were both incredibly intriguing, and gentle characters in their nature - they definitely drew me in from the off.
- That being said, the plotline, although fairly basic, kept my interests high and did the job!
- I loved the presentation of the story - the interspersion of Yuko in 1945 after the bomb hit, with present-day Chris was particularly effective as it forced a mental shift in time period, and mood, which served to accentuate the finer details of their stories.
- I loved the use of real Hiroshima stories (such as that of Sadako Sasaki, which was particularly heart-wrenching). It brought home the horrors of the war, without the graphics, and made the story feel super personal. On the same thread, I LOVED THE JAPENESE CULTURE and I am now WISHING I COULD GO ON HOLIDAY THERE. Using real Japanese words, places and formalities etc added to the depth of tangibility in the story - I'm super intrigued by the "Shibuya Crossing".
What I didn't like as much:
- The story was fairly erratic in places; was sometimes hard to follow when events were merged together.
- The ending fell on the cliché side for me. Don't get me wrong, I usually don't have a major problem with cliché plotlines (because I'm a sucker for what I know I like), but it just felt a little out of place in a novel which tackled such a serious theme.
- Also, I wasn't a massive fan of the plot-twist at the end. IT SEEMED TOO OUT OF PLACE FOR MY LIKING *shakes head*
Favourite quotations:
"Rise up, Yuko, and greet the morning sun. Bed is for lazy, flop-eared dogs. The world awaits those who leap from their beds and run to meet it." - mostly because I need this kind of motivation in my mornings *snoozes alarm for the 9th time*
Rating?:
4/5 stars - would have been higher if not for the weird ending tangent.
Would I recommend it?:
Yes, definitely. It tackles the difficult topic with great consideration, and delicacy. If you're put off by premade perceptions of the historical fiction genre, or potentially graphic scenes, it's nothing of the sort! Although the stories were heart-breaking, the actual plotline was heart-warming in itself, and I think any age should use this book as a tactful opportunity to discover more about the Japanese reaction to Hiroshima, and the effects of it that are still prevalent to this day!
Read
January 17, 2019And Then The Sky Exploded Book Review
Our genealogy makes us who we are, why we have our beliefs and practices and it also tells us why we are here today. According to Ancestry.com, only 50% of American families have ever researched their family roots. In David Poulsen’s historical fiction book, And Then The Sky Exploded, Christian Larken is part of that 50% who does not know anything about his family history until a series of troublesome events lead Christian to discover the grim secrets of his great-grandfather's past.
The thirteen-year-old Christian Larkin is having a hard time digesting the fact that his great grandpa Will has passed away. But things get even more complicated after protesters gathered outside the church in Trimble Ohio, were great grandpa Will’s service had been. They gathered with signs and violent words about his great grandpa being a murderer and a terrible person. Christian became curious about what they had meant but his parents refused to tell him anything on the matter. Not long after the events at the church, word got around school that Christian Larkin’s great grandfather was a part of the Manhattan Project during WWII. The project that had designed and shipped off the atomic bomb that struck Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The bombs that killed thousands of innocent people of all age groups. This information had struck Christian personally for some reason and he felt that it was his duty to make things better by fixing the mistakes his great grandfather has made in the past. A common theme that I found in this book is, we can always right a wrong. Throughout this book, Christian struggles to find a way to make things better with the Japanese even though the event took place many years ago. He finally decides that he should start by going to Japan, he influences the school board and travel club to travel to Japan so he can make peace with not only the citizens but with himself. The day before their departure back home Christian decides what he must do. He visits the grandmother of a little girl he met at a Japanese historical museum and talks with her. While there he said, “Obaasan, you have told me about your life, but I haven’t done anything for you. I still haven't done anything to make up for what happened to you.” In response, Obaasan stated, “You have done something for me, Christian-kun. You have heard my words.” This was all Christian needed, those words set his spirit free and allowed him to finally feel at peace with his conscious once again.
I would personally rate this book a four out of five because it had an amazing story plot and important and relatable theme and it gives you some background knowledge about WWII. Another interesting thing about this book is that it goes in between the present and the past. The present is telling all about Christian Larkins life and the past is telling the story of a young girl who lives in Hiroshima during WWII and her struggle to stay alive after everyone she knows and loves has died from the bomb. Then at the end of the book, both stories come together well. But I feel that this book did not have enough struggles in the sense that there were no constraints in order to get a group of kids to fly to Japan for a random school trip. I feel as though that is kind of unrealistic and would have been more of a challenge to do. But those challenges were not apparent in the text. I believe that if you like historical fiction books in general, stories of struggle, important life lessons that shape who we are and dynamic characters then this book is just for you because it includes every one of those aspects.
Our genealogy makes us who we are, why we have our beliefs and practices and it also tells us why we are here today. According to Ancestry.com, only 50% of American families have ever researched their family roots. In David Poulsen’s historical fiction book, And Then The Sky Exploded, Christian Larken is part of that 50% who does not know anything about his family history until a series of troublesome events lead Christian to discover the grim secrets of his great-grandfather's past.
The thirteen-year-old Christian Larkin is having a hard time digesting the fact that his great grandpa Will has passed away. But things get even more complicated after protesters gathered outside the church in Trimble Ohio, were great grandpa Will’s service had been. They gathered with signs and violent words about his great grandpa being a murderer and a terrible person. Christian became curious about what they had meant but his parents refused to tell him anything on the matter. Not long after the events at the church, word got around school that Christian Larkin’s great grandfather was a part of the Manhattan Project during WWII. The project that had designed and shipped off the atomic bomb that struck Nagasaki and Hiroshima. The bombs that killed thousands of innocent people of all age groups. This information had struck Christian personally for some reason and he felt that it was his duty to make things better by fixing the mistakes his great grandfather has made in the past. A common theme that I found in this book is, we can always right a wrong. Throughout this book, Christian struggles to find a way to make things better with the Japanese even though the event took place many years ago. He finally decides that he should start by going to Japan, he influences the school board and travel club to travel to Japan so he can make peace with not only the citizens but with himself. The day before their departure back home Christian decides what he must do. He visits the grandmother of a little girl he met at a Japanese historical museum and talks with her. While there he said, “Obaasan, you have told me about your life, but I haven’t done anything for you. I still haven't done anything to make up for what happened to you.” In response, Obaasan stated, “You have done something for me, Christian-kun. You have heard my words.” This was all Christian needed, those words set his spirit free and allowed him to finally feel at peace with his conscious once again.
I would personally rate this book a four out of five because it had an amazing story plot and important and relatable theme and it gives you some background knowledge about WWII. Another interesting thing about this book is that it goes in between the present and the past. The present is telling all about Christian Larkins life and the past is telling the story of a young girl who lives in Hiroshima during WWII and her struggle to stay alive after everyone she knows and loves has died from the bomb. Then at the end of the book, both stories come together well. But I feel that this book did not have enough struggles in the sense that there were no constraints in order to get a group of kids to fly to Japan for a random school trip. I feel as though that is kind of unrealistic and would have been more of a challenge to do. But those challenges were not apparent in the text. I believe that if you like historical fiction books in general, stories of struggle, important life lessons that shape who we are and dynamic characters then this book is just for you because it includes every one of those aspects.
October 15, 2016
**I voluntarily read an Advance Reader's Copy of this book provided by Dundern Press Via NetGalley.**
Teenager Christopher Larkin discovers his great-grandfather's past when protesters attend his funeral. Only then does he understand that the kind, fun old man he knew worked on the Manhattan Project, helping make the nuclear bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. For Christopher this causes confusion and a strong need to make amends somehow. He travels to Japan on a school trip and meets an 81-year old survivor. But what can a 14-year old teenager do to make amends for a lifetime Yuko has lived with her physical and mental scars from August 6, 1945? His friends think his idea is silly. But Christopher discovers that sometimes listening and understanding can have a profound effect.
I enjoyed this book. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. My father fought in World War II, and I wish my youngest son had gotten to know him. But he never got to hear my father's stories of the war and how terrible it was. I want him to read this book, so that he can understand a little bit about the cost of the war on both sides. Sometimes I think in American history classes the decision to drop the bombs on Japan is glossed over as a choice that was necessary to end the war and stop the killing. On the other side of that decision were thousands of Japanese civilians who had no escape. In the end, the cost of war on both sides is immense. We should never forget what happened, and it should make us ever vigilant to preserve peace.
I was a bit hesitant to read this book at first. I imagined a fictional rant aimed at those who made the decision to drop the bombs and anyone involved, but that's not what this book is about. Far from it. This is a story of a new generation needing to understand that period and the roles their great-grandparents' generation played in it. The story is not one of blame, but an attempt to bring about a true understanding of peace and forgiveness.
I still have letters my father wrote home from Europe during WWII. I'm going to let my 12-year old read this book and those letters so that he has an understanding of the sacrifices made on both sides. Millions of lives were lost in those years, and we can never allow future generations to forget what caused the conflict, or the decisions that led to the deaths of innocents on both sides. It's staggering to comprehend that in one flash, one moment in time, thousands of people were killed and thousands more left to agonize with burns, radiation poisoning and other physical injuries. Two entire cities. Boom. Gone. All those people. Many incinerated in an instant.
It can never happen again.
And Then the Sky Exploded is well-written and not overly-graphic. The story is age-appropriate for middle-grade readers. I would have liked to see a bit more of the story written from Yuko's point of view just to get more of the story of her recovery and life after the bombing. But, that might be too much for younger readers. As it is, the story is powerful, moving and very well written. I think this book could be a great classroom tool for history teachers as enrichment during units on WWII for middle school students.
This book was just released today (October 15th, 2016) by Dundern Press. David A. Poulsen is the author of several books including Serpent's Rising and Old Man. Learn more about the author and his books on his website: www.davidpoulsen.com
Teenager Christopher Larkin discovers his great-grandfather's past when protesters attend his funeral. Only then does he understand that the kind, fun old man he knew worked on the Manhattan Project, helping make the nuclear bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. For Christopher this causes confusion and a strong need to make amends somehow. He travels to Japan on a school trip and meets an 81-year old survivor. But what can a 14-year old teenager do to make amends for a lifetime Yuko has lived with her physical and mental scars from August 6, 1945? His friends think his idea is silly. But Christopher discovers that sometimes listening and understanding can have a profound effect.
I enjoyed this book. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. My father fought in World War II, and I wish my youngest son had gotten to know him. But he never got to hear my father's stories of the war and how terrible it was. I want him to read this book, so that he can understand a little bit about the cost of the war on both sides. Sometimes I think in American history classes the decision to drop the bombs on Japan is glossed over as a choice that was necessary to end the war and stop the killing. On the other side of that decision were thousands of Japanese civilians who had no escape. In the end, the cost of war on both sides is immense. We should never forget what happened, and it should make us ever vigilant to preserve peace.
I was a bit hesitant to read this book at first. I imagined a fictional rant aimed at those who made the decision to drop the bombs and anyone involved, but that's not what this book is about. Far from it. This is a story of a new generation needing to understand that period and the roles their great-grandparents' generation played in it. The story is not one of blame, but an attempt to bring about a true understanding of peace and forgiveness.
I still have letters my father wrote home from Europe during WWII. I'm going to let my 12-year old read this book and those letters so that he has an understanding of the sacrifices made on both sides. Millions of lives were lost in those years, and we can never allow future generations to forget what caused the conflict, or the decisions that led to the deaths of innocents on both sides. It's staggering to comprehend that in one flash, one moment in time, thousands of people were killed and thousands more left to agonize with burns, radiation poisoning and other physical injuries. Two entire cities. Boom. Gone. All those people. Many incinerated in an instant.
It can never happen again.
And Then the Sky Exploded is well-written and not overly-graphic. The story is age-appropriate for middle-grade readers. I would have liked to see a bit more of the story written from Yuko's point of view just to get more of the story of her recovery and life after the bombing. But, that might be too much for younger readers. As it is, the story is powerful, moving and very well written. I think this book could be a great classroom tool for history teachers as enrichment during units on WWII for middle school students.
This book was just released today (October 15th, 2016) by Dundern Press. David A. Poulsen is the author of several books including Serpent's Rising and Old Man. Learn more about the author and his books on his website: www.davidpoulsen.com
July 3, 2019
I liked the concept of this book and enjoyed the meeting of the child with the elderly lady.
The scene with the skinheads didn’t fit and the football game scene didn’t move the story forward.
I enjoyed learning about the peace center.
The scene with the skinheads didn’t fit and the football game scene didn’t move the story forward.
I enjoyed learning about the peace center.
July 20, 2016
And Then the Sky Exploded
by David A. Poulsen
Dundurn
Children's Fiction, Teens & YA
Pub Date 15 Oct 2016
I was given a copy of And Then the Sky Exploded through the publisher and their partnership with Netgalley in exchange for my honest review which is as follows:
And then The Sky Exploded is the story of a generation old family secret coming to light. It's a story that spans time and place.
August.06.1945
Yuko's eleventh birthday and her entire world will never be the same.
On October 06,2015 Christian finds himself attending his first funeral that of his Great Grandfather. The funeral brings out protesters and people screaming out Mass Murderers, and the date August.06.1945 he waits a few days to ask what it was all about.
Soon he hears words like The Manhattan project, which he ends up googling.
Christian's best friend is Carson, a deaf kid in his class whose a couple of years older and has a driver's license.
Christian also becomes friends with a girl named Zania .
Yuko's life would forever be changed when those bombs fell, her hai would never grow break completely so she'd wear a scarf for the rest of her life, and she would always walk with a limp.
When Christian goes to Tokyo with some of his classmates he is given the Oppurtunity to meet Yuko, and learn how the atomic bomb affected her.
And Then The Sky Exploded is a story of family secrets, unimaginable pain and ultimately of forgiveness.
I give this book five out of five stars
Happy Reading.
September 4, 2016
Imagine loving and admiring your great grandfather more than anyone else in your life, only to find out after this great man's death that he was integrally involved in the Manhattan Project-the effort to create the world's first nuclear weapon. This is exactly the situation Christian Larkin finds himself in. With this new knowledge, Christian feels overwhelming guilt and confusion. How can the man who played street hockey with him have also been partially responsible for one of the deadliest moments in human history? Is there something Christian can do to make amends?
Christian eventually gets his chance when he goes on a class trip to Japan. But how can he possibly make up for his great grandfather's part of history? Does he even have to?
Yuko is getting ready to celebrate her birthday on the day the sky explodes. Somehow, miraculously, Yuko survives when nearly everyone in Hiroshima does not. She goes on to live a long, yet very difficult life. The memory of that day, and those following, never leave her mind.
David A. Poulsen weaves a page-turner of a story. Intertwining Christian's story along with Yuko's story, Poulsen sucks the reader in. This is a story of healing and coming to grips with your family's past. The characters are real, the history is carefully researched and presented, and then the ending is genuine. I highly recommend this great story which is set to be released October 15th (according to NetGalley) from Dundurn. Thank you, Dundurn, for granting me an ARC! I finished this in two days!
Christian eventually gets his chance when he goes on a class trip to Japan. But how can he possibly make up for his great grandfather's part of history? Does he even have to?
Yuko is getting ready to celebrate her birthday on the day the sky explodes. Somehow, miraculously, Yuko survives when nearly everyone in Hiroshima does not. She goes on to live a long, yet very difficult life. The memory of that day, and those following, never leave her mind.
David A. Poulsen weaves a page-turner of a story. Intertwining Christian's story along with Yuko's story, Poulsen sucks the reader in. This is a story of healing and coming to grips with your family's past. The characters are real, the history is carefully researched and presented, and then the ending is genuine. I highly recommend this great story which is set to be released October 15th (according to NetGalley) from Dundurn. Thank you, Dundurn, for granting me an ARC! I finished this in two days!
July 22, 2016
An interesting take on the event that precipitated the end of WWII, Poulsen's novel centers around teenager Christian, who attends his beloved great-grandfather's funeral, and wonders why there are protesters outside it, seemingly celebrating his passing. He is stunned to learn that he was part of the team of eminent scientists who designed the atomic bomb, named the Manhattan Project.
His tale is interwoven with that of Yuko, who was an eleven-year-old girl when the bomb exploded over Hiroshima, destroying her entire life as she knew it, obliterating her entire family and leaving her horribly injured.
When their paths cross, on a school trip to Japan that Christian arranges for his school, he determines to try and repent for the sins of his great-grandfather and somehow make amends for the past. But what can a teenage boy do to mend so great a hurt?
The central story of the book is really strong - how could it be anything else, with the incredible, heartbreaking subject matter it covers. There is a somewhat superfluous subplot on the more paranormal side, that I found a little jarring. Plus a school nemesis called Lorelei who achieves redemption in a really bizarre finale that just didn't feel in keeping with the rest of the story.
All in all, a mixed bag. Read it for the history, not for the contemporary tales.
His tale is interwoven with that of Yuko, who was an eleven-year-old girl when the bomb exploded over Hiroshima, destroying her entire life as she knew it, obliterating her entire family and leaving her horribly injured.
When their paths cross, on a school trip to Japan that Christian arranges for his school, he determines to try and repent for the sins of his great-grandfather and somehow make amends for the past. But what can a teenage boy do to mend so great a hurt?
The central story of the book is really strong - how could it be anything else, with the incredible, heartbreaking subject matter it covers. There is a somewhat superfluous subplot on the more paranormal side, that I found a little jarring. Plus a school nemesis called Lorelei who achieves redemption in a really bizarre finale that just didn't feel in keeping with the rest of the story.
All in all, a mixed bag. Read it for the history, not for the contemporary tales.
November 11, 2016
14-year-old Chris is at his great-grandfather's funeral when a small group of protesters show up, calling his GG a mass murderer... naturally Chris is a bit wtf and his parents are tight-lipped, but eventually he finds out that his GG was one in the team of scientists who worked on the atomic bombs that were dropped on Japan in 1945. Chris gets all into researching Japan, and then gets to visist there when he suggests it for his school's travel club and it wins the vote.
We also get to read the story of Yuko, who was ten in 1945 and who survived the blast. I thought her chapters were very interesting and informative! I've read a lot of WWII books, both fiction and non, but the vast majority have been set in Europe, maybe one or two in America, Australia and the South Pacific. This was my first Japanese setting, although it was clearly more about the aftermath than during the actual war.
Along with the heavier storyline it also has a nice middle-school feel to it, complete with school bully Lorelai, who has a few surprises up her sleeve for Chris!
We also get to read the story of Yuko, who was ten in 1945 and who survived the blast. I thought her chapters were very interesting and informative! I've read a lot of WWII books, both fiction and non, but the vast majority have been set in Europe, maybe one or two in America, Australia and the South Pacific. This was my first Japanese setting, although it was clearly more about the aftermath than during the actual war.
Along with the heavier storyline it also has a nice middle-school feel to it, complete with school bully Lorelai, who has a few surprises up her sleeve for Chris!
July 6, 2016
I am not usually a big reader of YA fiction but the subject of this book really intrigued me. A young teen, Christian, is the great grandson of one of the scientists who helped create the atomic bomb that was dropped over Hiroshima at the end of WWII. Christian recently learned of his grandfather's participation in the Manhattan project and since that time he has struggled with feelings of guilt for the victims in Japan. Yuko was 11 years old when the bomb fell and killed thousands of people, including her entire family. Miraculously Yuko survived and is able to tell her story of that horrible day. Christian is able to meet Yuko and she shares what her life was like after the sky exploded that day. Although this book is classified as YA fiction, as an adult I found the book to be very interesting and I would recommend it to all readers.
Thank you to Netgalley and Dundurn Press for providing me with an advanced readers copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley and Dundurn Press for providing me with an advanced readers copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.
August 24, 2016
4.5 stars
It was at the funeral that Christian first realized there was something important he didn't know about his grandfather. His quest led him to a point of change: to admit the past, or to discard it.
Written for teenagers but not dumbed down, Poulson uses Christian's thoughts to work through concepts few adults will admit to, including the sense that an immense tragedy is too difficult to comprehend. The parallel story, of Christian's journey and Yuko's own personal experience of Hiroshima, draws the reader to each in turn as they discover more of themselves and the world around them, and brings the initial effects of Hiroshima to life as Christian researches his grandfather's history.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
It was at the funeral that Christian first realized there was something important he didn't know about his grandfather. His quest led him to a point of change: to admit the past, or to discard it.
Written for teenagers but not dumbed down, Poulson uses Christian's thoughts to work through concepts few adults will admit to, including the sense that an immense tragedy is too difficult to comprehend. The parallel story, of Christian's journey and Yuko's own personal experience of Hiroshima, draws the reader to each in turn as they discover more of themselves and the world around them, and brings the initial effects of Hiroshima to life as Christian researches his grandfather's history.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 31, 2016
The cover alone was one of the main reasons that I asked to read this book before its release through NetGalley, and boy am I pleased I had the opportunity to! What a neatly written story about a young boy that found out that his great-grandfather was part of the creation of the bomb that we (the United States) attacked Japan (Hiroshima) with. Having that knowledge led this boy down a path of trying to find a way to make up for what we did, even if it was a small thing.
I loved the characters of this book and the back and forth between the experience a young girl had with being in the radius of the bomb (and surviving) and this young boy's quest to make it right. This book is a great read and I definitely recommend it to anyone reading this review!
I loved the characters of this book and the back and forth between the experience a young girl had with being in the radius of the bomb (and surviving) and this young boy's quest to make it right. This book is a great read and I definitely recommend it to anyone reading this review!
January 12, 2017
I wanted to like the book more than I did but I warm up to it by the end. It follows the story of a young teen who finds out his grandfather helped build the atomic bomb. The protagonist takes a school trip to Japan and during the trip tries to make amends for his grandfather's involvement with the Hiroshima bombing.
Overall, I wanted more background and motivation for the characters. I wanted more about the protagonist's family and grandpa but less of of the interactions with the school friends. I warmed up to the story during the last 1/3 of the book once the protagonist got to Japan and the story seemed to flow a bit more smoothly.
Overall, I wanted more background and motivation for the characters. I wanted more about the protagonist's family and grandpa but less of of the interactions with the school friends. I warmed up to the story during the last 1/3 of the book once the protagonist got to Japan and the story seemed to flow a bit more smoothly.
May 16, 2016
A compelling look at the horror of war through the eyes of those who lived it and those who haven’t
April 9, 2025
Week 1
2. Now that you have had a chance to start the book, are you happy with your choice? Will you stick with this book? Why or why not?
Yes I am happy with my choice. It is a good reading level to me. I find the book overall interesting and I enjoy reading it. I think I will stick with it. I find it easy to stay focused on reading the book. I like how in each chapter it switches between the perspective of two people and their very different lives. I also find it very informative about the historical event.
Week 2
2. Describe the antagonist or the main obstacle in the story. How has this difficulty come about? Does the antagonist have their own motivations? What needs to happen to overcome this problem?
In my opinion, the antagonist of this story is not very clear and less of a person but more of an obstacle. We see in the beginning of the story, the main character Chris is attending his Great-Grandfather’s funeral. Protesters show up and he is very confused. He goes home and does research about his Great-grandfather. He discovers that his Great-grandfather was a large part of the Manhattan Project back in 1945, which surrounds large bombings that happened during world war 2. Throughout the book, we see that he spends a lot of time trying to “make up” for what his great grandfather did.
Week 3
1.What does the main character want or need? What will get in the way of that? How will the character overcome the problem?
In this story, I found something quite unusual with the main character’s goal. Surprisingly, when the main character (Chris) goes on his trip to Japan, he outright states that he doesn't even know what his goal is in all of it (referencing his trip). This however, does not exclude a mission for the antagonist which is part of a usual story. Instead, there is subtext leading you to believe that he does have one overall even if it isn't super specific or stands out. He will overcome the problem by facing his fears and finding a solution to his resonating sense of guilt from his family's past history.
Week 4
What is something that has happened or is happening in the world around you that relates to the book? Describe the event, and then describe the part of the book that relates to it. How are they similar?
With lots of wars and conflicts going on in the world right now, many places are similar to how it was described in the book. Many places are turned to dust from bombs everyday in places like Ukraine and Palestine alongside many others and it is similar to what happened in world war 2, with the bombings. Many families are torn apart just like in the book due to countries' conflicts.
Week 5
How do you feel about a particular character in the book? Describe your feelings or attitudes towards the character, and then describe some of the specific things in the book that have led you to feel that way.
By the end of the book, the character Lorlei Faber becomes much nicer of a person compared to her past self in the beginning of the book. One key element to this change is her heroic moment saving Zaina and Christian from gang members on their trip to Japan. This action makes her a much more likable character with more personality than just being the mean popular girl. While in the last chapter it does state she still calls Chris names at school, she also makes inside jokes about the trip frequently to him, showing their friendship had grown.
Week 6
Describe a scene in the book where a sensory image is used. What sense does the author appeal to? How does the sensory image work to give the reader a better sense of the setting and/or surroundings. How does it help the reader feel situated?
As gory as it was, a lot of sensory images were used to describe the aftermath of the explosion, which made it seem so much more realistic and easier to understand the gravity of the event. The author thoroughly described the surroundings, (blood, ruined buildings, radiation etc.) and it helped a lot.
2. Now that you have had a chance to start the book, are you happy with your choice? Will you stick with this book? Why or why not?
Yes I am happy with my choice. It is a good reading level to me. I find the book overall interesting and I enjoy reading it. I think I will stick with it. I find it easy to stay focused on reading the book. I like how in each chapter it switches between the perspective of two people and their very different lives. I also find it very informative about the historical event.
Week 2
2. Describe the antagonist or the main obstacle in the story. How has this difficulty come about? Does the antagonist have their own motivations? What needs to happen to overcome this problem?
In my opinion, the antagonist of this story is not very clear and less of a person but more of an obstacle. We see in the beginning of the story, the main character Chris is attending his Great-Grandfather’s funeral. Protesters show up and he is very confused. He goes home and does research about his Great-grandfather. He discovers that his Great-grandfather was a large part of the Manhattan Project back in 1945, which surrounds large bombings that happened during world war 2. Throughout the book, we see that he spends a lot of time trying to “make up” for what his great grandfather did.
Week 3
1.What does the main character want or need? What will get in the way of that? How will the character overcome the problem?
In this story, I found something quite unusual with the main character’s goal. Surprisingly, when the main character (Chris) goes on his trip to Japan, he outright states that he doesn't even know what his goal is in all of it (referencing his trip). This however, does not exclude a mission for the antagonist which is part of a usual story. Instead, there is subtext leading you to believe that he does have one overall even if it isn't super specific or stands out. He will overcome the problem by facing his fears and finding a solution to his resonating sense of guilt from his family's past history.
Week 4
What is something that has happened or is happening in the world around you that relates to the book? Describe the event, and then describe the part of the book that relates to it. How are they similar?
With lots of wars and conflicts going on in the world right now, many places are similar to how it was described in the book. Many places are turned to dust from bombs everyday in places like Ukraine and Palestine alongside many others and it is similar to what happened in world war 2, with the bombings. Many families are torn apart just like in the book due to countries' conflicts.
Week 5
How do you feel about a particular character in the book? Describe your feelings or attitudes towards the character, and then describe some of the specific things in the book that have led you to feel that way.
By the end of the book, the character Lorlei Faber becomes much nicer of a person compared to her past self in the beginning of the book. One key element to this change is her heroic moment saving Zaina and Christian from gang members on their trip to Japan. This action makes her a much more likable character with more personality than just being the mean popular girl. While in the last chapter it does state she still calls Chris names at school, she also makes inside jokes about the trip frequently to him, showing their friendship had grown.
Week 6
Describe a scene in the book where a sensory image is used. What sense does the author appeal to? How does the sensory image work to give the reader a better sense of the setting and/or surroundings. How does it help the reader feel situated?
As gory as it was, a lot of sensory images were used to describe the aftermath of the explosion, which made it seem so much more realistic and easier to understand the gravity of the event. The author thoroughly described the surroundings, (blood, ruined buildings, radiation etc.) and it helped a lot.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
December 16, 2019In “And Then The Sky Exploded”, a young teenager, Christian Larkin, soon finds out that after his great-grandpa Will dies, he was apart of a project that helped hill thousands of people. Along with a bunch of other scientists from all over the world, they all helped build a bomb to drop on Japan. Christian then feels like it’s up to him to make up for what his grandpa did and does everything in his power to make that happen.
Christian lived a usual life as you’d expect, but as Christian leaves his great grandpa’s funeral and sees all the signs, “murderer”, or “he deserved it” and it leaves Christian wondering, he then finds out about what his great-grandpa did and can’t help but feel somewhat responsible as well.
He feels like it’s now in his hands to fix what his great-grandpa did and try and fix what happened. Christian then takes on Japan for a school trip. While trying to have fun, he also tries his best to find a way to help fix what his great-grandpa did. Even though he got told many times that “it wasn’t something he could fix”, or “it wasn’t something he could do anything about”, that didn’t stop his passion for this.
I think, “And Then The Sky Exploded”, is not a book about figuring out how to make up for his great-grandpa’s wrongdoings but more so a book about Christian figuring out who he is.
At the beginning of the book, it was very clear that Christian wanted to make up for what his great-grandpa did and that’s all it talked about in the book. As you read further into the book his desire towards that goal grew even more. But closer to the end I feel like that drifted away, which really cancels out the whole purpose of the book.
Christian didn’t want anything but to figure out a way to do better, to help, to make up for it. But deeper into the book it seemed like it wasn’t really about his great-grandpa it was more about him. After reading the book I feel like, in the beginning, Christian didn’t really succeed anything yet, but closer to the end of the book I think he was able to feel more accomplished. All throughout the book it was all, “I have to make it better”, and all that, and after reading the book I feel like that didn’t matter to Christian.
Through the book, Christian has girl problems, friendship problems, school problems, and I feel once he found out about his great-grandpa that changed his life drastically. Leaving Christian questioning who he really is.
I personally did not like this book as much as I did when I started reading it. The author gave us a situation and never solved it through the book. I feel like in every book there should be a solution to every problem, there was no solution to the problem in this book. The book wasn’t bad but this is the only thing I’d change about it.
Christian lived a usual life as you’d expect, but as Christian leaves his great grandpa’s funeral and sees all the signs, “murderer”, or “he deserved it” and it leaves Christian wondering, he then finds out about what his great-grandpa did and can’t help but feel somewhat responsible as well.
He feels like it’s now in his hands to fix what his great-grandpa did and try and fix what happened. Christian then takes on Japan for a school trip. While trying to have fun, he also tries his best to find a way to help fix what his great-grandpa did. Even though he got told many times that “it wasn’t something he could fix”, or “it wasn’t something he could do anything about”, that didn’t stop his passion for this.
I think, “And Then The Sky Exploded”, is not a book about figuring out how to make up for his great-grandpa’s wrongdoings but more so a book about Christian figuring out who he is.
At the beginning of the book, it was very clear that Christian wanted to make up for what his great-grandpa did and that’s all it talked about in the book. As you read further into the book his desire towards that goal grew even more. But closer to the end I feel like that drifted away, which really cancels out the whole purpose of the book.
Christian didn’t want anything but to figure out a way to do better, to help, to make up for it. But deeper into the book it seemed like it wasn’t really about his great-grandpa it was more about him. After reading the book I feel like, in the beginning, Christian didn’t really succeed anything yet, but closer to the end of the book I think he was able to feel more accomplished. All throughout the book it was all, “I have to make it better”, and all that, and after reading the book I feel like that didn’t matter to Christian.
Through the book, Christian has girl problems, friendship problems, school problems, and I feel once he found out about his great-grandpa that changed his life drastically. Leaving Christian questioning who he really is.
I personally did not like this book as much as I did when I started reading it. The author gave us a situation and never solved it through the book. I feel like in every book there should be a solution to every problem, there was no solution to the problem in this book. The book wasn’t bad but this is the only thing I’d change about it.
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