The Selection

5 out of 5 stars. This has to be one of my favorite books of 2012, and thanks to Christmas and my lovely sisters, I now own this wonderful book!!!! One thing I will say, though, is that this book is not for everyone. I would classify it as "fluff" (in a good way) compared to the other dystopian books that have been so popular this year; that is the reason why I liked it. All summer long I had been reading gritty, harrowing tales about the future of our world, and I was weary of the same old story. So, when I picked The Selection up to read (once again upon the recommendation of my sister, Liz. Shout out!!!) I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Normally I don't like "fluffy" books, but The Selection was just so cute and fun that I didn't care; I loved and still love this book. The Selection begins with America Singer telling of the day she received a letter in the mail. At the age of sixteen, every young lady in the country of Illea is eligible to enter The Selection, where each young lady has the chance to marry the prince of Illea. Many, many years have gone by without a male heir to the throne, but the wait has finally ended with Prince Maxon's coming of age. Now all the young ladies are after the handsome prince's heart. All that is, except America. She has already found her true love, Aspen, and nothing will stand in the way of their happiness, maybe except for one big obstacle: their social status. She is a Five and Aspen is a Six. Though only one rank stands between them, everything is virtually in their way. When the letter of all letters arrives at the Singer home, America has no intentions to pursue The Selection, not even if she could become a One. But Mrs. Singer has other plans in mind, and so does Aspen. With a heavy heart and by the prodding of everyone she loves (including Aspen), America enters her application for The Selection. Much to her chagrin she is accepted. America has no intentions of winning The Selection or to ever fall love again, but she eventually finds herself starting to do both. Will America be able to get over Aspen and all the pain he caused her? Can she find her own life without him? Or is she doomed to remain brokenhearted and friendless in The Selection? Maxon is the Prince of Illea, son of the King and Queen. He is destined to rule his father's country and protect it and its people. Yes, he can do that. The Selection on the other hand is a very different story. Ruling a country seems easier than finding someone to spend the rest of his life with that is until he meets the lovely redhead named America. After a few interesting meetings, he finds the petite, spunky girl to be kind, smart, and very funny. Although he wants more than a friendship to blossom between them, America seems to have other ideas. Could America be the one Maxon is looking for, or is he only fooling himself? The Selection was great! Not only was the cover beautiful, but the story inside was great too! I loved every moment of reading this book, and although it is a bit corny (loved it!), I think it is in my top five favorite books. Kiera Cass has done an amazing job of creating likeable characters that feel like long-lost friends. I also really admired America; she was smart, funny, and very likeable and she stuck up for herself. She never went behind anyone's back to be mean, and I liked that she didn't let the love interests trample her. So many guy characters are total dirt-bags and get away with murder practically, yet the girl normally goes along with it. She gives up her life and dreams so he can get what he wants. America never did that; she respected herself enough to choose what was right for her but not in a selfish way. I really liked that, and I think it sets a good example for young girls to be a good person, to be kind and a good friend, but to not allow people to run over them and use them. The Selection was great and I CANNOT wait until The Elite comes out! Check-out my blog at booksandwonderfulthings.wordpress.com

I gave the book four stars because it has all the elements of a "the daily grind escapism" type novel. It is a fun read and provides a nice respite from the general humdrum of life--a critical element of any book in my opinion. It loses a star because it "borrows" heavily from several other novel/media plots already well-known to anyone who reads or has a television. The basic premise of the story is that America as we currently know it has ceased to exist due to a major war and economic collapse. In rebuilding the new country from the ruins left after the war(s), a Monarchy was installed and society was divided into a caste system. Your caste defines the lifestyle you have as well as your social position, income potential, marriage opportunities, and educational prospects. It is extremely difficult to improve one's caste designation, but that seems to be a desire for many of the lower castes (I think there are eight total). To improve the moral of the populace, each heir to the throne has a selection "competition" for want of a better word, in which his/her future spouse is chosen from one of the members of the lower castes. (Royalty, if I remember correctly are "ones", many white collar professionals, etc.. are twos, and the differing professions decline in caste level from there. There is really not a great deal of explanation regarding why certain professions are relegated to their particular caste, and there is not much detail regarding what segments of society make up each caste and how the caste designations were determined--even in transsexuals this is not adequately addressed. You just know that "fives" are on the fringe of acceptability---they are entertainers, artists, sculptors, etc--and "fours" and lower are basically considered social pariahs. At any rate, when the heir to the throne reaches a certain age, a call is sent across the country soliciting eligible young women from all castes to apply to be chosen for "the selection." This is essentially the bachelor in YA disguise. Enter our protagonist America Singer, a "five.". She reluctantly enters to shut her mom up and because the stipend chosen girls receive would help her family make it through the winter when money is especially tight. Of course she doesn't want to enter, assumes the eligible prince is a self-centered, entitled and shallow git, has a secret, but impossible love interest already, and believes she is nowhere near special enough to be chosen. And wouldn't you know it, she is chosen. She just so happens to be a free-thinking, honest, if not a slight bit socially awkward loveable "girl-next-door" that is endearing because of her moxie and her down to earth realism and honesty. She also has the requisite inner angst over her back-home boyfriend, her feelings of not quite belonging amongst the other contestants, and her unexpected positive feelings towards the heir, Prince Maxon. (Who seems just as befuddled by the rigors of navigating social interactions with peers as she is.) So the book gets excellent praise for well-developed main characters, even if the plot is a bit trite. That is enough information to hint at the drama, intrigue, inner struggles, and relational entanglements that ensue for the remainder of the novel. There is glamour, contestant rancor, sabotage, and all around dog-eat-dog competition as the contestants play out the fracas involved.in catching Maxon's eye while trying to appear poised and perfect for the national media blitz surrounding the entire affair. What follows is an engaging read that will leave you eagerly awaiting the download of the subsequent sequels.

Loved the book went through it so fast. Great for easy reading

This book is still one of my favourites to reread even years later. I loved the story and caste system that Kierra Cass created and the character depth and growth that America Singer went through in this series. If you like books like The Hunger games and books that have trials I would definitely recommend you try out this series. For parents looking to get their teens books for Christmas this book is YA friendly with very minimal spice and mainly focuses on the trial with little bits of romance mixed in. I'll always hold America's and Maxon's story close to my heart.

Amo os livros de A Seleção, especialmente os 3 primeiros sobre a América. Já li 3 vezes, foi com ele que decidi tentar voltar ao hábito de ler, para quem quer se acostumar a ler em inglês é uma ótima escolha pois tem uma linguagem bem simples.

I wish I've never read this...SO THAT I COULD READ IT AGAIN !!! I pulled an allnighter reading this book, and I literally couldn't put it down!!! I finish reading all 3 books in less than 2 days. Its the PERFECT mix of romance and actions.

J'aime énormément la saga de Kiera Cass. La Selection est une belle histoire d'amour sous fond de monarchie dystopique. Je l'ai acheté en anglais car je veux apprendre cette langue.