Review: The Forgetting Curve by Angie Smibert

From Goodreads: Aiden Nomura likes to open doors - especially using his skills as a hacker - to see what’s hidden inside. He believes everything is part of a greater system: the universe. The universe shows him the doors, and he keeps pulling until one cracks open. Aiden exposes the flaw, and the universe - or someone else - will fix it. It’s like a game. Until it isn’t. When a TFC opens in Bern, Switzerland, where Aiden is attending boarding school, he knows things are changing. Shortly after, bombs go off within quiet, safe Bern. Then Aiden learns that his cousin Winter, back in the States, has had a mental breakdown. He returns to the US immediately. But when he arrives home in Hamilton, Winter’s mental state isn’t the only thing that’s different. The city is becoming even stricter, and an underground movement is growing. Along with Winter’s friend, Velvet, Aiden slowly cracks open doors in this new world. But behind those doors are things Aiden doesn’t want to see - things about his society, his city, even his own family. And this time Aiden may be the only one who can fix things ... before someone else gets hurt. 

My Rating: 3 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: The sequel to Angie Smibert’s Memento Nora, The Forgetting Curve, requires you to have read and remembered what happened in the first book since it dives right back into the world of Memento Nora, but recaps everything very, very briefly. I find it therefore ironic that The Forgetting Curve deals with the concept of memory.

In Memento Nora, the story was narrated through the eyes of Nora, Micah and Winter. Although Winter’s voice is back in The Forgetting Curve (though she didn’t seem as fascinating due to the neurochip in her head), the perspectives of Nora and Micah have been replaced by Aiden and Velvet. I understood the reason for the change, but I didn’t like it because I thought Velvet’s story wasn’t as interesting as everybody else’s. Also, I found it hard to relate to Aiden because as someone who isn’t very technologically savvy, he lost me whenever he started talking about hacking.

Aside from the emotional disconnect from the characters, the plot of The Forgetting Curve confused me at times and left me wondering how the Nomuras got involved with TFC’s scheme and what TFC’s end goal is (besides making a profit, of course). As well, *minor spoiler ahead* while the idea of implanting neurochips sounded cool, the science behind it seemed kind of vague to me.

The Forgetting Curve was released by Marshall Cavendish on May 1, 2012.

Comments About the Cover: The cover matches Memento Nora’s pretty well. I also like that it manages to convey Aiden’s coolness. 

In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received from the publisher (Marshall Cavendish) for free via NetGalley.

Author Interview: Angie Smibert (and Giveaway)

As part of the A Cornucopia of Dystopia event held by Casey from The Bookish Type and Danya from A Tapestry of Words, Angie Smibert, the author of Memento Nora, is here today to answer some of my questions. 

A bit about Angie (as quoted from her website): I was born in Blacksburg, a once sleepy college town in the mountains of Southwest Virginia. I grew up thinking I wanted to be a veterinarian; organic chemistry had other ideas. But I always had stories in my head. Eventually, after a few degrees and few cool jobs - including a 10-year stint at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center - I wrote some of those stories down. I’ve published many short stories, for both adults and teens. My first novel, MEMENTO NORA, will be hitting the shelves in April 1, 2011.

What was the inspiration behind Memento Nora?

The story grew out of a question (or series of questions, really). I was reading about some current research into post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). (Yes, I am a geek.) Scientists are testing drugs to help break the grip that traumatic memories have on PTSD sufferers. The drug in the study helped the memories fade into more “normal” memories. I asked myself what if the drug actually erased those memories - and what if you could get that drug as easily as you could a skinny vanilla latte. I started building the story, the world, and the characters from that point.

Art plays an important role in the lives of Nora, Micah and Winter. Do you have a background in art and what type of art is your favourite?
Nope. I’m no artist, but I’ve hung out (or worked with) many.  My favorite type? I’m fond of impressionist painters - and kinetic sculpture. Really, I like an art that speaks to you in some way.

To remember their stories, the kids all create a comic book. What do you think is the appeal of graphic novels? Oh, and if you do you read a lot of graphic novels yourself, what is your favourite book/series?
I chose for them to do a comic because underground comics have a long history of being subversive. In the 60’s and 70’s, for instance, artists and writers put out political (and other) comics just using pen, paper, and mimeograph (or other type of duplicating machine).  I think graphic novels and comics are engaging and accessible yet the powers-that-be might not take them very seriously. That allows the writer/artist to say a lot. One of my favorite graphic novels - Maus by Art Spiegelman - started out in an underground comic magazine. The graphic novel is only one ever to win a Pulitzer.

How much research did you have to do to figure out how the pill would work?
I did do a fair bit of research. In fact, Memento Nora started out as a short story that appeared in Odyssey, which is teen / tween science magazine. So I had to get the science right.

From the three characters of Nora, Winter and Micah, which one is your favourite and which one are you most like?
It’s not fair to make me pick a favorite! Okay, I will admit I have a soft spot for Winter. I wouldn’t say, though, I’m really more like one character than another. Every writer puts a little bit of themselves in each character.  However, I will say that I wouldn’t have been in Nora’s clique in high school. 

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A huge thank you to Angie for taking the time to answer my questions! Oh, and for those of you who want to read Memento Nora, I have an ARC of it to give away.

So, read the rules below, and then fill out this FORM:

1. This giveaway is US/Canada only! 
2. You do not have to be a follower to enter.
3. You must be over the age of 13.
4. This giveaway will end on April 18, 2011 at 11:59 PM.
5. I am going to be picky about making sure your entries are tallied correctly. Save me some time and you won't feel my wrath ;)

Review: Memento Nora by Angie Smibert

From Back Cover: On an otherwise glossy day, a blast goes off and a body thuds to the ground at Nora's feet. There are terrorist attacks in the city all the time, but Nora can't forget. So Nora goes with her mother to TFC - a Therapeutic Forgetting Clinic. There, she can describe her horrible memory and take the pill that will erase it. But at TFC, a chance encounter with a mysterious guy changes Nora's life. She doesn't take the pill. And when Nora learns the memory her mother has chosen to forget, she realizes that someone needs to remember. With newfound friends Micah and Winter, Nora makes a comic book of their memories call Memento. Memento is an instant hit, but it sets off a dangerous chain of events. Will Nora, Micah, and Winter be forced to take the Big Pill that will erase their memories forever?

My Rating: 3.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Angie Smibert’s Memento Nora is a short but tightly woven debut that will leave readers thinking about issues such as violence and terrorism, medicalization, consumerism and the role that governments and corporations play in society.

The novel is told from the perspective of three teenagers, Nora, Micah and Winter, each of whom has their own reason for collaborating on Memento. Aside from having their own unique story, the characters also had very distinctive voices, which I really liked. I would have been able to tell who the narrator was even without the heading showing whose viewpoint I was reading from.

I also thought that the ending was well-done though I was surprised by it. In hindsight however, I should have seen it coming! I definitely hope that there’s a sequel because I’d like to know what happens to Nora, Micah and Winter now.  

Memento Nora will be released on April 1, 2011 by Marshall Cavendish.

Comments About the Cover: Although it’s a little too dark to see the features of the model clearly, I like that it’s hard to see her because she becomes more indistinguishable from other girls. Memento is distributed secretly and the identities of Nora, Micah and Winter as the authors must remain hidden in the book. 

In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received courtesy of Casey from The Bookish Type and Danya from A Tapestry of Words as part of their A Cornucopia of Dystopia event.

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For those of you who are curious: We are very far from creating a pill that can make people forget traumatic memories. Not only would this pill have to be selective for certain memories but it would also have to be able to cross the blood-brain barrier to reach the brain. Using vectors however, a group of neuroscientists have been successful at selectively ablating fear memory in mice.