A Cornucopia Of Dystopia: Lauren Oliver Scavenger Hunt Interview

Today is the finale of A Cornucopia Of Dystopia event held by Casey at The Bookish Type and Danya at A Tapestry Of Words and to have some fun on the last day we're doing a scavenger hunt interview with Lauren Oliver, the bestselling author of Before I Fall new dystopian Delirium. The interview is spread across eight blogs, each linking to the next in the chain. You'll have to follow the link trail to see the interview in its entirety!

Here's my question for Lauren:

What was your absolute favourite aspect of writing and researching Delirium?

I loved spending time in Portland, Maine, and getting to know the city and the feel of the place. It felt very exotic to me—not necessarily because it is exotic, but because it was a huge moment where I suddenly realized, “I’m a writer—this is my job—to go places and listen to people.” And of course I had so much fun playing with the idea of love as a disease, and more importantly, writing about the fears and anxieties that love can provoke. It’s funny; I really have lived through times when I would have gladly taken the cure. And when I meet people who haven’t, and can’t understand it, there’s a disconnect to me. I feel like: wait, haven’t you ever had you heart broken? Haven’t you ever felt like you’d been smashed into bits by someone else? So I liked exploring that.

Thank you so much for answering my question Lauren! I hadn't read Delirium at the time I wrote the question but I have now and I absolutely loved it (you can find my review here). It had me thinking about whether I would take the cure and it must have been interesting pondering that whilst you were writing. The concept is challenging but I imagine you had fun coming up with and creating Delirium's dystopian world. You can really tell from the detail about the setting in Delirium that you've spent a lot of time there researching and it adds an extra dimension to the book. I would love to be just to go and visit places to 'people watch' and look around- all the more reason for trying to become an author....

The next question of the scavenger hunt interview can be found over at

 Supernatural Snark

so don't forget to pop on over there and keep reading the rest of the interview! Enjoy :D

Finally, (I know I've said it before in my interview with Katie Kcvinsky) but I want to say another huge thank you to Casey and Danya for putting so much hard work into organising this wonderful event to celebrate new dystopian releases and making it a success. It's been a privilege to take part and a lot of fun. I hope everyone has enjoyed it as much as I have whether you're a reader or a blogger taking part in the event!



A Cornucopia of Dystopia: Interview with Katie Kacvinksy, author of Awaken

Katie Kacvinsky worked in the entertainment industry and as a high school English teacher before deciding to write full time. She currently lives in Corvallis, Oregon.

Today I am very pleased to welcome Katie Kacvinsky, the author of the new dystopian book Awaken, onto the blog to answer some of my questions as part of A Cornucopia of Dystopia. A Cornucopia of Dystopia is an exciting blogging event featuring new dystopian fiction releases held by the lovely Casey at The Bookish Type and Danya at A Tapestry Of Words.

So without further ado, here's the interview! :

Where did you get the inspiration for Awken and its dystopian world?

Not to be a huge pessimist, but I think we’re on the cusp of living in a dystopian society. I’ve read articles about people trying to go a week without Facebook or a week without texting and they physically can’t. It’s this obsession with our current digital lifestyle that inspired so many ideas in Awaken.

Technology is constantly progressing and changing in today's world- how is Maddie's world relevant to teenager's today?

Yes, technology is progressing every day. But here’s the thing; technology is supposed to make our lives better. I think we’ve hit a dangerous line where it’s starting to deplete our lifestyles. It’s messing with our attentions spans, our relationships, our culture. My younger cousin told me since Facebook and texting have become the most common forms of communication, that guys don’t ask her out anymore. They consider a date to be texting now. You can read someone’s Facebook profile to get to know them instead of asking them in person. There’s something so phony about all that. Let’s work a little harder to know one another. Let’s not dish our lives out on a screen. Make people work a little harder to get to know you. That’s how you value things—when you have to work for them. Aren’t people worth that?

What research did you have to do for Awaken?

The freedom of writing fiction is I can invent anything I want, so I let my imagination do most of the work. I looked at current trends and technologies and extrapolated them. I also love reading science journals, like Scientific American, Wired and non fictions books; Hot, Flat and Crowded is one of my favorites. These resources helped inspire my digital creations and futuristic setting.

What appealed to you about writing a dystopian novel?

I think a good story should entertain, but I also think a story should make you think about your own values and relationships. I love the idea of making something fictional, but real enough that it could happen. My favorite stories are books like Fahrenheit 451 and Slaughterhouse Five, and movies like The Terminator and The Matrix. They make you evaluate your own morals and values—that’s the only time you question anything.

How would you describe Awaken in a sentence?

Oh, I’m so bad at this! One sentence…Awaken is a dystopian romance about a girl living almost completely in a digital society until someone helps her unplug and learn what it means to be human.

What would you like readers to take away with them after reading Awaken?

I know that my readers will have mixed feelings about my messages. More than anything, I hope reading it will encourage dialogue. I hope it makes my readers think about their own habits and that it encourages conversation about where our technology-driven culture is going—the benefits, but also the consequences of our digital age.

What was your reaction when you saw the final cover design?

Initially I was really surprised; the cover design they showed me was nothing like the one we discussed, which was going to show a girl and boy on the cover. But I absolutely love this cover. It represents my themes, my character, my story. It’s aesthetically gorgeous. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has a great design team.

How are you feeling about the release of your first YA novel?

Publishing a novel is a privilege and the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I’m trying not to have any expectations. I just want to enjoy the journey.

Thank you very much for taking the time to answer my questions Katie and for the interesting and in depth behind the scenes look into Awaken. What really intrigues me and  makes me want to read it is the fact that technology is progressing so fast now and a dystopian world like Awaken's seems scarily plausible. Now, a brand new phone could be considered out of date within a years time and people can become so addicted to digital devices. Not that they aren't hugely beneficial too...

This is my last post in the Cornucopia of Dystopia event and I just want to take this opportunity to say thank you to Danya and Casey for inviting me to be part of it and for all their hard work to make it a success. So, don't forget to check out the rest of the line up and enter some of the fabulous giveaways planned here!

A Cornucopia of Dystopia: Delrium by Lauren Oliver Review

Goodreads description

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the governments demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holloway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.  

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.


My Review

Warning: This review is filled with lots of gushing and praise!

There have been so many raving reviews for Delirium in the blogosphere but I'm going to have to jump on the bandwagon and say that it left me speechless. A book that has the power to leave me feeling like that with my emotions churned up inside is something special because it's very rare that it happens. It's so difficult to put into words why it had the 'wow' factor. Whilst reading it, I wanted to race ahead to the end and turn the pages as quickly as I could to find our what happens but at the same time savour it because I didn't want it to end. I've read several other dystopian books but Delirium just had so much more of an impact on me.

Delirium's dystopian world appeared at first to not be so wildly different from our own but as different aspects are slowly revealed and a fulled picture of the society built up in my mind, I could see more and more of the differences. It is easy to see why Lena is looking forward to having the treatment because she wants to be able to be free of unbearable memories from her early childhood. She appears to be the perfect normal teenager awaiting the treatment that will change her life forever: she can quote the Book of Shhh, she knows the answers to her interview questions by heart; she's always home by curfew and she only listens to the music and reads the books set by the government. Yet Lena still bears the scars of losing her mother and the taunting of having a mother who committed suicide because she fell in love underneath. When she falls in love herself, she must decide whether to trust the Society or her heart. All her conflicting emotions and insecurities came across really well because the first person present tense way that the story is related in means Lena has a distinct voice.

Lena and Alex's relationship was wonderfully pure and the bond that they shared was evident. It was beautiful! I thought that Lena's feelings at experiencing her first love in a time where love of any kind is forbidden were captured very well because they were realistic. Alex is a mysterious character who is vibrant and full of life in his attitude and I enjoyed watching him slowly showing Lena what living life is really all about. He just seemed so perfect as he was romantic, kind, loyal, brace AND quoted poetry! Whilst I usually don't like this in characters, I loved it in this context. However I would have liked to have seen more development from his character because the development is focused on Lena all the time because she has a lot more flaws.

I also liked seeing Lena and Hanna's best friend relationship unfolding because they have known each other almost all their life and are obviously very important to each other. Although, they've come to a point in life where they're changing, growing up and going separate ways in life whilst there friendship is being tested by this strain.

My favourite thing about the book was Lauren Oliver's amazing writing and phenomenal word building that is full of colourful description and imagery that brings the dystopian world that Lena lives in to life. I found that instead of detracting from the story as I sometimes find in books, they enhanced it. I was inspired to sit down and write and that just about sums up my feelings about it. Lauren Oliver knows how to build up an extremely tense and suspenseful scene because the ending had my heart pumping and was desperately heart wrenching as the book is driven to a dramatic climax. The cliffhanger that it is left on is possibly the biggest I've ever read and had the intended effect because I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel Pandemonium.

Final words: Delirium is an incredible love story infused with enthralling and emotional writing that also explores the coming of age of a teenage girl in a society that is trying to eradicate love. This might be cliche but it's one of the best books I've read in a long while!

Rating: 5 stars

A Cornocupia of Dystopia event!

During March and April, the lovely Casey from The Bookish Type and Danya from A Tapestry Of Words are holding an awesome dystopian blogging event that I am taking part in- very exciting! Thank you so much to Danya and Casey for all the hard work they have put into organising the event.

There will be author interviews, reviews, guest posts, cover-redesign contests and giveaways.It will feature lots of the dystopian books that many bloggers are eagerly anticipating or have already been released including:

I will be reviewing Delirium and welcoming authors Megan Mcafferty and Katie Kcvinsky for a guest post here :D

Here's the current schedule:

March

21 – A Tapestry of Words Dark Parties Review & Interview, The Bookish Type Memento Nora Review & Interview

22 – I Swim For Oceans Awaken Review & Interview, The Book Worms XVI Review & Interview

23 – A Writer’s Review Bumped Review, Musings of a YA Reader Memento Nora Review & Interview

24 – Books in the Spotlight Delirium Review, Supernatural Snark Possession Review, Reading Teen Wither Review

25 – Down the Rabbit Hole Bumped Review & Interview, Supernatural Snark Possession Interview

26 – Musings of a YA Reader Awaken Interview, A Writer’s Review Dark Parties Review, Books in the Spotlight Dark Parties Review

27 – Midnight Bloom Reads Awaken Review, The Bookish Type Delirium Review, BSAOT XVI Interview

28 – I Swim For Oceans Bumped Review & Interview, Midnight Bloom Reads Awaken Interview

29 – Supernatural Snark Memento Nora Review & Interview, Reading Teen Possession review & Interview

30 – 365 Days of Reading Bumped Review & Interview, The Bookish Type XVI Interview & Review

31 – Loud Words and Sounds Awaken Review & Interview, Good Choice Reading Dark Parties Review & Guest Post

 April

1 – Reading Teen Bumped Review & Interview, The Book Worms Memento Nora Review, Literary Explorations Wither Review

2 – Musings of a YA Reader Possession Review & Guest Post, Books are a Girl’s Best Friend Delirium Review, Books in the Spotlight Awaken Review

3 – Books in the Spotlight Awaken Interview, Down the Rabbit Hole XVI Review & Interview, 365 Days of Reading Memento Nora Review

4 – The Bookish Type Dark Parties Review & Interview, 365 Days of Reading Memento Nora Interview

5 – Books are a Girl’s Best Friend Awaken Guest Post, A Tapestry of Words Awaken Review, Literary Explorations Possession Review

6 – Loud Words and Sounds Bumped Review & Interview, Reading Teen Delirium Review, Musings of a YA Reader XVI Review

7 – Books in the Spotlight Dark Parties Interview, Supernatural Snark Awaken Review, A Tapestry of Words Possession Review

8 – The Book Worms Bumped Review, Midnight Bloom Reads Delirium Review, Supernatural Snark Awaken Interview, A Tapestry of Words Possession Interview

9 – The Book Worms Bumped Interview, Literary Explorations Memento Nora Review, 365 Days of Reading XVI Interview

10 – A Writer’s Review Awaken Interview, The Book Worms Possession Guest Post, The Bookish Type Possession Review

11 – Reading Teen XVI Review & Interview, The Bookish Type Possession Interview

12 – The Bookish Type Awaken Review & Interview, Books in the Spotlight Memento Nora Review, Literary Explorations Bumped Review

13 – Supernatural Snark Bumped Review, A Writer’s Review Possession Review, Books in the Spotlight Memento Nora Interview

14 – Reading Teen Awaken Review & Interview, 365 Days of Reading Dark Parties

15 – A Tapestry of Words Memento Nora Review & Interview, 365 Days of Reading Dark Parties Interview

16 – The Bookish Type Bumped Review, Books in the Spotlight Possession review, Supernatural Snark XVI Interview

17 – The Bookish Type Bumped Interview, Literary Explorations Delirium Review, Books in the Spotlight Bumped Review

18 – Delirium Scavenger Hunt Interview

So make sure to keep your eyes peeled for these posts across the 17 participating blogs, which can be found at A Tapestry Of Words or The Bookish Type and share in the fun! Also, a giveaway schedule will be announced soon by Casey and Danya.