Glory O'Brien's History of the Future - by A S King (Paperback)

About the Book

Includes excerpts from: Everybody sees the ants, Ask the passengers, Reality boy, and I crawl through it.

Book Synopsis

In this masterpiece about freedom, feminism, and destiny, Printz Honor author A.S. King tells the epic story of a girl coping with devastating loss at long last--a girl who has no idea that the future needs her, and that the present needs her even more.
Graduating from high school is a time of limitless possibilities--but not for Glory, who has no plan for what's next. Her mother committed suicide when Glory was only four years old, and she's never stopped wondering if she will eventually go the same way...until a transformative night when she begins to experience an astonishing new power to see a person's infinite past and future. From ancient ancestors to many generations forward, Glory is bombarded with visions--and what she sees ahead of her is terrifying: A tyrannical new leader raises an army. Women's rights disappear. A violent second civil war breaks out. And young girls vanish daily, sold off or interned in camps. Glory makes it her mission to record everything she sees, hoping her notes will somehow make a difference. She may not see a future for herself, but she'll do anything to make sure this one doesn't come to pass.

Review Quotes

* "A novel full of provocative ideas and sharply observed thoughts about the pressures society places on teenagers, especially girls."--Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "An indictment of our times with a soupçon of magical realism.... Will inspire a new wave of activists."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

* "King continues to be one of the most original (yet accessible) YA writers today, and the magical realism element accentuates the humanity of the narrative."--The Bulletin, starred review

* "King performs an impressive balancing act here, juggling the magic realism of Glory's visions with her starkly realistic struggle.... [A] powerful, moving, and compellingly complex coming-of-age story."--Booklist, starred review

* "This beautifully strange, entirely memorable book will stay with readers."--School Library Journal, starred review

*"Not only thoroughly original but also uniquely compelling and deeply memorable."--Horn Book, starred review

"Glory is a wry, occasionally acerbic narrator, exhibiting the balance of truth-telling and blindness so common to smart teens. In trademark King style, the chapters alternate between daily life and troubled future, despair and humor, rage and acceptance."--Shelf Awareness

"The characters will stay with readers long after they finish the novel....Highly recommended."--VOYA

"This book reminds you to get scared. It reminds you that battles fought aren't always won, that history repeats itself, that what we take for granted can easily be dismantled."--"Birthday by Birthday, a Starter Library for Young Feminists" --BNTeenblog

"Wickedly clever...a genre-busting battlefield of a book."--Bestselling author Rick Yancey for The New York Times

"You won't be able to put down this futuristic story about a girl who starts having visions of both the past and the future-in which she sees an end to women's rights and a civil war between sexes."--Teen Vogue

About the Author

A.S. King has been called "One of the best Y.A. writers working today" by the New York Times Book Review and a recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults. King is the author of novels including the 2020 Michael L. Printz Award-winning Dig., Glory O'Brien's History of the Future, the 2013 Los Angeles Times Book Prize winner Ask the Passengers, and 2011 Printz Honor Book Please Ignore Vera Dietz, among others. Her most recent release, Switch, has been called "a work of literary genius" by Booklist. She is a faculty member at Vermont College of Fine Arts and spends many months of the year traveling the country speaking to high school students about trauma, emotions, and red velvet cake. After many years living self-sufficiently and teaching literacy to adults in Ireland, she now lives in Pennsylvania. Find more at www.as-king.com.