Module 8: Numbers

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Book Summary: For as long as she can remember, Jem has been able to see a set of numbers each time she looked somebody in the eye. It wasn't until her mother's death on October 10, 2001, that she realized the numbers, in her mother's case, 10102001, was the person's death date. This information haunts her throughout her years spent in the foster system and Jem avoids as much as possible forming close connections to people, because she doesn't want to get close enough to see when people around her are going to die. This doesn't work with Spider, one of her classmates, who Jem can see is going to die in only a few short weeks, and when the two cut school and go into central London to ride on the London Eye, something happens that will change both their lives. When Jem looks around and sees that all the people in the square have the same number, she realizes that something is terribly wrong, and convinces Spider to leave mere minutes before the explosion that destroys part of the London Eye and kills many people in the vicinity. They are caught on tape running from the scene and are soon on the run from a police hunt as possible witnesses to the attack. Jem and Spider get as far away from London as possible in order to escape the questions that come with such a narrow escape. 

APA Reference of the book: Ward, R. (2010). Numbers. New York: Chicken House/Scholastic.

Impressions: The premise of this book, that Jem can see the death date of anyone she looks in the eye, is an interesting one, but the overall book did not have much of a science fiction feel to it, for me at least, which I kept waiting for throughout the book. Despite this, it was an interesting, if somewhat depressing, read. Ward effectively shows the reader the bleakness of life on the run from law enforcement and the desperation of the characters to stay unnoticed whenever possible. In many ways this book reminded me of Safekeeping by Karen Hesse, in which the main character, during political unrest in the U.S., walks north to Canada for safety, all the while avoiding others on the road who may wish to do her harm. Overall the journey of Jem and Spider was fairly bleak, although there were moments of levity, and the ending had a sad sort of symmetry, in showing that the dates Jem sees cannot be averted, as events Jem has been trying to avoid finally come to pass. It is a book that will definitely give the reader something to think about.

Professional Review: "Gr 8-10--10102001. That's Jem's mother's number. Jem saw it whenever she looked into her mother's eyes, but it wasn't until four years after the woman's fatal heroin overdose when Jem was 11 that she realized that the number was the date her mother would die. And it's not just that number that the teen sees--she knows when everyone will die by looking into their eyes. Isolating herself from the rest of humanity seems to be the only solution until Spider, a freakishly tall, twitchy mess of a boy, refuses to leave her alone. In spite of the fact that she knows his death date is only months away, she can't resist his overtures of friendship. One afternoon, while ditching school, they head for the London Eye tourist attraction. When Jem realizes that several people standing in line are fated to die that very day, she panics and takes off. Newspapers and television pick up the story, and Jem and Spider, targeted as the terrorists responsible for destroying the Eye, or at least witnesses, are on the run in a stolen car. Ward's debut novel is gritty, bold, and utterly unique. Jem's isolation and pain, hidden beneath a veneer of toughness, are palpable, and the ending is a real shocker. Teens who read Charles De Lint, Holly Black, and Melvin Burgess will take to this riveting book and eagerly await the upcoming sequel."

Baird, J. H. (2010). [Review of Numbers by Rachel Ward]. School Library Journal, 56(1), p. 115-116. Retrieved from: http://www.slj.com/

Library uses: This book could be used in a display of science fiction works, or in a display on books about people who can foresee different things, whether that be a person's death date, as in the story, or events from the future, etc. It could also be used to discuss the terror attack on the London Eye in 2010.