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Skyward
Emery is a Less Than, raised behind a wall and under a roof that rarely opens, in a system that grooms some to be lowly and some to be Elite. When she is offered an assignment to take care of the Old Ones, she glimpses a world beyond the restricted one she has known.
She plans to escape with Augustus, who longs to see the farm he used to live on, and Emery learns much more about the system that kept her from ever seeing the sky—and about the beautiful, rich world she’s been kept from. She tastes food, sees trees, and uncovers her own past for the first time.
A hopeful story about a crumbling dystopia, Skyward is a reminder of what happens when we put money before people, and how love is the best resistance.
She plans to escape with Augustus, who longs to see the farm he used to live on, and Emery learns much more about the system that kept her from ever seeing the sky—and about the beautiful, rich world she’s been kept from. She tastes food, sees trees, and uncovers her own past for the first time.
A hopeful story about a crumbling dystopia, Skyward is a reminder of what happens when we put money before people, and how love is the best resistance.
200 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2021
8 people want to read
About the author
Susan White
121 books12 followersLibrarian Note: There are more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 15, 2022
Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Skyward in exchange for an honest review.
I feel like it's not fair that I didn't love Skyward. I've had the ARC longer than any other and kept pushing it back until it got put onto Goodreads and I think it made my expectations be way too high before I even started it? It's generic dystopia. It's plot beat and characters are generic YA dystopia, its writing is generic dystopia and by all accounts, its a well done YA dystopia. I'm always worried when I say things are generic and tropey people perceive that as a bad thing but books that manage to play into your comfort zone can be awesome and I think more authors should be okay striving towards that.
I feel like it's not fair that I didn't love Skyward. I've had the ARC longer than any other and kept pushing it back until it got put onto Goodreads and I think it made my expectations be way too high before I even started it? It's generic dystopia. It's plot beat and characters are generic YA dystopia, its writing is generic dystopia and by all accounts, its a well done YA dystopia. I'm always worried when I say things are generic and tropey people perceive that as a bad thing but books that manage to play into your comfort zone can be awesome and I think more authors should be okay striving towards that.
June 28, 2023
Ariela: Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Skyward was such a good novel oh my gosh.
Worldbuilding: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The worldbuilding in itself was pretty good, I liked it and I enjoyed it. Out story starts in something called “The Establishing Compound” made up of a society of Elites and Less Thans. The Elites are the ones who live lavish lives and are raised as spoiled rich kids, and the Less Thans are the workers who support the Elites. The Less Thans are brainwashed from the start, and taught that Elites are above them in every way. Together both Elites and Less Thans live within the wall, and Emery, a Less Than, begins to think of what life must be like outside of the wall.
At first I thought the names were a bit off. If it were up to me, I wouldn’t be naming an entire class of people “Less Thans” because it sounds like a very drab name. But then I realized that it was kind of the point. Make them have a boring name because they’re all supposed to be boring people. Mindless zombies that just do whatever they’re told and trained not to question orders.
As for what lies outside of the wall, it’s just the normal world. People who have been “released” by the Establishing Compound and been allowed to live freely outside of the wall. However, there’s a period of time before the wall was established and their were older people who were living to see it happen. Within the wall these people are called the “Old Ones” and they are cared for until they die. However I really don’t understand why they were there in the first place?
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
You know that with most dystopian novels there’s always the main character who has to lead some sort of revolution to overthrow the government who’s oppressing everyone? Yeah, well that happens, but Emery Davidson (our main character) isn’t filling people full of arrows or calling herself the Mockingjay, or thinking she’s part of something other because she’s super aware of her surroundings. She’s just an ordinary girl who shuts down the system by pure determination and loyalty to the people that she loves. And she doesn’t have to flee off grid with 50 different types of weapons on a mission to assassinate the president. Y’know. She’s not like other girls (I’m sorry and I’m kidding lol). I thought dystopian novels weren’t good without everyone running around in black cargo pants and army uniforms shooting at each other but… here we are. This really showed me that you absolutely CAN make a non-violent dystopian novel that’s actually good. I think the thing is that this focuses on more emotional parts rather than physical. It’s super heartfelt and well written, and it’s very emotional. If you cry easily, then have some tissues ready.
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Emery, Augustus, Daisy, they’re all solid characters. Emery especially, since we’ve got the story from her POV, and she’s such a thoughtful character. I liked her. She’s not particularly rebellious, per se, just curious enough to find loopholes and ways to escape the world she lived in. These characters were all perfect to convey the strong emotions in this book. The cover says “sometimes love is the best resistance” and once you read this book the characters really make you understand that. I even felt for the characters that were already dead. Now that’s good writing.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, and I really love what Susan White writes.
Skyward was such a good novel oh my gosh.
Worldbuilding: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The worldbuilding in itself was pretty good, I liked it and I enjoyed it. Out story starts in something called “The Establishing Compound” made up of a society of Elites and Less Thans. The Elites are the ones who live lavish lives and are raised as spoiled rich kids, and the Less Thans are the workers who support the Elites. The Less Thans are brainwashed from the start, and taught that Elites are above them in every way. Together both Elites and Less Thans live within the wall, and Emery, a Less Than, begins to think of what life must be like outside of the wall.
At first I thought the names were a bit off. If it were up to me, I wouldn’t be naming an entire class of people “Less Thans” because it sounds like a very drab name. But then I realized that it was kind of the point. Make them have a boring name because they’re all supposed to be boring people. Mindless zombies that just do whatever they’re told and trained not to question orders.
As for what lies outside of the wall, it’s just the normal world. People who have been “released” by the Establishing Compound and been allowed to live freely outside of the wall. However, there’s a period of time before the wall was established and their were older people who were living to see it happen. Within the wall these people are called the “Old Ones” and they are cared for until they die. However I really don’t understand why they were there in the first place?
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
You know that with most dystopian novels there’s always the main character who has to lead some sort of revolution to overthrow the government who’s oppressing everyone? Yeah, well that happens, but Emery Davidson (our main character) isn’t filling people full of arrows or calling herself the Mockingjay, or thinking she’s part of something other because she’s super aware of her surroundings. She’s just an ordinary girl who shuts down the system by pure determination and loyalty to the people that she loves. And she doesn’t have to flee off grid with 50 different types of weapons on a mission to assassinate the president. Y’know. She’s not like other girls (I’m sorry and I’m kidding lol). I thought dystopian novels weren’t good without everyone running around in black cargo pants and army uniforms shooting at each other but… here we are. This really showed me that you absolutely CAN make a non-violent dystopian novel that’s actually good. I think the thing is that this focuses on more emotional parts rather than physical. It’s super heartfelt and well written, and it’s very emotional. If you cry easily, then have some tissues ready.
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Emery, Augustus, Daisy, they’re all solid characters. Emery especially, since we’ve got the story from her POV, and she’s such a thoughtful character. I liked her. She’s not particularly rebellious, per se, just curious enough to find loopholes and ways to escape the world she lived in. These characters were all perfect to convey the strong emotions in this book. The cover says “sometimes love is the best resistance” and once you read this book the characters really make you understand that. I even felt for the characters that were already dead. Now that’s good writing.
Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, and I really love what Susan White writes.
November 28, 2024
The writing was good, and there were clearly defined characters.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews