The People of Sparks

DuPrau, J. (2004). The People of Sparks  . New York: Random House.

  Interest Level: 6 - 8

Grade Level Equivalent: 5.1

Lexile® measure: 760L

DRA: 44

Guided Reading: U

Genre/Theme:Fantasy

The People of Sparks is the second story in the Ember series. In this story Doon and Lina have lead their people out of the underground city of Ember just in time for the lights to go out for good. They reach the surface and find a beautiful world full of sunshine and green grass. The people of Ember walk and walk until they finally come to the town called Sparks. The people of Sparks decide to take in all 400+ refugees. When the cities resources start to become scarce they ration the food given to the Emberites. People of Sparks start treating the Emberites terribly. Before a war breaks out Doon and Lina need to figure out who in Sparks is perpetuating this violence before it is too late for everyone.

The characters in this book, just as in the City of Ember, are completely believable.  They fit the setting of the story, and even though they are only 12 years old, they seem like the perfect people to save the City of Ember. We get to witness Doon and Lina grow as individuals and in their friendship as they both do what they think is right for the people of their city. The details provided in the story make it feel as though you are there with these people. It is set on Earth far in the future after the "Disaster". We have not yet found out what this "Disaster" was yet.

Literary Elements highlighted in this story:

Allegory: This book can be seen as an allegory for how we currently treat immigrants and refugees. The people of Ember were refugees in this story, and instead of helping them and treating them with respect, the people of Sparks vandalize their homes and starve them. I think things like this happen far too often in society today.

Foreshadowing: From the very beginning of the story the attitudes of the people of Sparks are portrayed in a way that the reader knows something bad is going to happen between the two populations of people. Also, Tick(the leader of the Emberites who wants war) can be seen from a negative light from the very beginning; it is apparent to the reader that he is going to start something.

Allusion: The book alludes to the "Disaster" the entire time, and in the the third book we finally find out what it is, and it is exactly as the reader assumed it would be.

Mini-lesson: This book is a great way to get students thinking about what they would do in situations like Doon and Lina are in. Is it better to live in peace or to start a war? How would you go about asking the people of Sparks for more food or shelter? Do you think that the people of Sparks are right or wrong in the way that they treat the people of Ember? These would all be great writing assignments or questions to pose for a Socratic Seminar.