Pictured Above: On the cover, some of Juliette’s internal character development is shown by these lines: My touch is lethal. My touch is power.
Courtesy of taherehbooks.com
By Catherine Hicks
I recently completed my re-read of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, a compelling dystopian novel that showcases some of the problems most concerning to its intended audience – young adults.
In a future where the havoc of climate change and the overexertion of governmental powers has created a desolate, militarized country that struggles to feed its citizens, Juliette Feras has been imprisoned in a mental asylum for having a superpower: her touch is fatal.
Mafi utilizes lyrical, poetic writing and non-traditional syntax to demonstrate the chaos of living with a mental illness through Juliette’s character and thoughts, while also addressing societal issues present in the futuristic landscape.
Throughout the book, the reader is met with lines of thoughts that are crossed out — thoughts that Juliette herself doesn’t want to admit or confront. As we witness her character growth through the continuation of this book and the rest of the series, these crossed out lines of thought lessen in number.
In this dystopian future, the government as we know it has been replaced with a movement known as The Reestablishment, an authoritarian, tyrannical government that controls its citizens to the highest degree and treats only those with a military use fairly.
The Reestablishment sees Juliette’s deadly touch as a potential weapon, but Juliette has other plans. For the first time in her life, Juliette realizes that she doesn’t have to allow her life to be controlled by others, and fights for the hope to claim her life as her own.
“Hope is hugging me, holding me in its arms, wiping away my tears and telling me that today and tomorrow and two days from now I will be just fine and I’m so delirious I actually dare to believe it.”
