The Diary of Pelly D
by L.J. Adlington
2005
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-10–Tony V is part of a crew of drillers excavating the ruins of City 5. While working, he finds a diary hidden in the plaza. Although keeping items from the digs is forbidden, he takes it and begins to read during his free time. It belongs to a girl named Pelly D, who is pretty, popular, and wealthy. But something changes in her life when everyone is required to be tested for gene ancestry, and she turns out to be Galrezi, one of the undesirable genetic strains that society has turned against. Readers witness the shift in Pelly D's life and its inevitable conclusion. The author has clearly based the book on the Holocaust, but the lack of background information about this fictional world leaves readers confused about the true cause of the genocide. Unfortunately, while they get a lot of details about Pelly D's vibrant, glittering rich life, her time in the ghetto is less complete. The true horrors of what is happening are muted until the end of the book, taking away much of its power. The concept is interesting and the world of Tony V is well rendered, but in the end, the novel disappoints.–Tasha Saecker, Caestecker Public Library, Green Lake, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Grade 7-10–Tony V is part of a crew of drillers excavating the ruins of City 5. While working, he finds a diary hidden in the plaza. Although keeping items from the digs is forbidden, he takes it and begins to read during his free time. It belongs to a girl named Pelly D, who is pretty, popular, and wealthy. But something changes in her life when everyone is required to be tested for gene ancestry, and she turns out to be Galrezi, one of the undesirable genetic strains that society has turned against. Readers witness the shift in Pelly D's life and its inevitable conclusion. The author has clearly based the book on the Holocaust, but the lack of background information about this fictional world leaves readers confused about the true cause of the genocide. Unfortunately, while they get a lot of details about Pelly D's vibrant, glittering rich life, her time in the ghetto is less complete. The true horrors of what is happening are muted until the end of the book, taking away much of its power. The concept is interesting and the world of Tony V is well rendered, but in the end, the novel disappoints.–Tasha Saecker, Caestecker Public Library, Green Lake, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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