Matched

Lists and Awards

Chosen as one of YALSA’S 2011 Teens’ Top Ten
Publishers Weekly’s Best Children’s Books of 2010
#1 Pick on the Winter 2010/2011 Kid’s Indie Next List
YALSA 2011 Best Fiction for Young Readers
YALSA 2011 Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers
Amazon Best Books of the Month, December 2010
Winner of the 2010 Whitney Award for Best Youth Fiction: Speculative

Reviews

Kirkus, Starred Review–”Condie peels back layer after dystopic layer at breakneck speed, Dylan Thomas reverberating throughout. If the Society’s at war, who’s the enemy? Of the three tablets carried by everyone, what does the red one do? …A fierce, unforgettable page-turner in its own right.”

Publisher’s Weekly, Starred Review. –”Condie’s enthralling and twisty dystopian plot is well served by her intriguing characters and fine writing. While the ending is unresolved (the book is first in a trilogy), Cassia’s metamorphosis is gripping and satisfying.”

The Wall Street Journal. “…superb dystopian romance.”

Los Angeles Times. “Matched is a wonderful debut with strong, rather than strident, feminist undertones — a primer for young minds encouraged to question.”

Booklist. –”The stunning clarity and attention to detail in Condie’s Big Brother–like world is a feat. Some readers might find the Society to be a close cousin of Lois Lowry’s dystopian future in The Giver (1993), with carefully chosen work placements, constant monitoring, and pills for regulating emotional extremes. However, the author just as easily tears this world apart while deftly exploring the individual cost of societal perfection and the sacrifices inherent in freedom of choice.”

Crossed

Lists and Awards
Selected for the Winter 2011-2012 Kids’ Indie Next List

Reviews

Kirkus, Starred Review. “Cassia and Ky grapple with secrets, wilderness and the tumultuous meanings of love in the second installment of this addictive, layered dystopic trilogy… Although two-boys-one-girl triangles run rife in this genre, Condie’s is complicated and particularly human, involving real emotional scars…Both rich and easy to digest, this will leave fans hungry for the third book.”

School Library Journal. “Told in alternating chapters from their points of view, the book gives readers full access to the hearts and minds of two memorable characters. Their needs, love, and internal conflicts are palpable. Their voices are distinct and authentic, and the writing is often poetic.”

VOYA. “This is more than just a placeholder between the first and last parts of a trilogy… Condie effectively sets the stage for the final chapter in Cassia’s story by leaving the reader hanging at the end of the book. Matched fans will devour this book and be eager for the concluding one.”

Publisher’s Weekly. “…vivid, poetic writing… Condie immerses readers in her characters’ yearnings and hopes.”

Freshman for President

• “Condie’s restrained narrative keeps the plot linear, subtly nuanced by the mysterious depression of Milo’s older sister, Maura.  However, even she is drawn into the campaign.  Will Milo be elected President of the United States of America?”  —ForeWord Magazine

• “The teen remains a regular guy throughout the experience—thoughtful, earnest, and likable—so most readers will empathize with his triumphs and struggles…The mobilization of young voters by having a spokesperson their own age is appealing… and Milo’s actions to capitalize on that potential seem credible.”  —School Library Journal

• “Freshman for President, by Ally Condie, is a fiction book geared for all ages of teens and will surely help inform and excite them for when they can actually vote.”  —Holly Newton, The Columbia Tribune

• “Highly recommended.”  —Charlene Hirschi, The Herald Journal (Logan, Utah)

• “I know what you’re thinking, ‘A high school freshman running for President of the U.S.A?  Ridiculous!’ Maybe.  And maybe not.  The story of Milo J. Wright is amazing and funny and sobering and…possible!  It’s just the kind of thing I would have done in high school.  “There are not many YA authors that capture the ‘teen voice’ as well as Allyson Condie.  My daughter and I both read Freshman for President and loved every page.”  —New York Times Bestselling Author Jason F. Wright

• “I am a political junkie and a fan of young adult fiction.  I have been spending way too much time following the current presidential election and trying to balance being a dad, teacher, and finishing my PhD.  For a graduation gift my wife brought home Freshman for President…I found the book engaging and realistic. The high school students were genuine and I found myself thinking everything in the book could really happen.  A wonderful read that I shared with my wife and my thirteen-year-old daughter (they both loved it too).”  —Darrin Simpson, parent and educator

Reunion

• “Reunion by Allyson Braithwaite Condie is the story of young adults leaving high school, beginning college, and embarking on missions. It’s a tangle of discovering who and what is important, falling in love, and making decisions. It’s written in a warm contemporary style that explores many of the child-to-adult turning point issues.”  —Jennie Hansen, Meridian Magazine

First Day

• Chosen as a Whitney Award finalist for Best Young Adult/Childrens Novel in 2007

•  “Condie raised the creative bar for LDS fiction in her debut novel, Yearbook.  Now in her follow up, First Day, she’s cleared it by a mile!”  —Jason F. Wright, New York Times Bestselling Author

Yearbook

• “This book will captivate you from the beginning and hold you to the very end…Well suited for teens through adults!”  —Holly E. Newton, M.A., Meridian Magazine

• “I appreciated the important moral lessons learned.  I highly recommend it for today’s teenagers!”  —John Bytheway, bestselling author of How to Be Totally Miserable and What I Wish I’d Known in High School